Behind the Bars
by x.Kaze-chan
Summary: //SasuSaku// AU She should have known better than to extend her help to him. Now, she has to deal with the many temptations clawing at her with the undeniably sexy street racer in her home. “Are you seducing me?” “…Are you seduced?” “N-No!” “Then no."
1. World War III

Summary: /SasuSaku/ AU She should have known better than to extend her help to him. Now, she has to deal with the many temptations clawing at her with the undeniably sexy street racer in her home. "Are you seducing me?" "…Are you seduced?" "N-No!" "Then no, I'm not." Slight crack.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, just the plot.

Rating: T (Some content not suitable for children)

Warning: OOC!Sasuke!

* * *

"_Are you afraid?"_

…

How was she to respond?

"_A…afraid of…of what?"_

…-_Breath_-…

(_OHMY…_!)

He just…_breathed_ on her neck!

A _smirk_.

That cocky (oh_so_sexy) ass…

"_Afraid of _me_, of course."_

She twitched inwardly before jabbing him in the forehead harshly,  
half a mind to toss the pile of papers in his face.

"_Of course not! You're a street racer, _illegal_, and you have a bounty on your head! I can report you any minute!"_

She watched him raise his eyebrow at her.  
She showed him her own scowl.

"_You're not scared of me then?"_

Her cheeks flushed.

"_No!"_

Why was her back suddenly against that cold, hard wall?

"…"

And why was his hand moving up the back of her shirt?

"_Err… hey! I'm letting you take refugee in my home, so respect me!" _

And just why the hell were his lips so _wet_ and **on her neck**?

"…_You're just lucky I haven't jumped you yet, woman."_

She blinked.

"…_H-Huh?"_

He nibbled on her ear.  
She could swear. Her face was **livid**.

"_Show me you're not afraid."_

She blinked again.

"…_How…?"_

Another devilish (_and oh so sexy_) smirk.

"_I'll show you."_

_My god,_ this man was just _hot_ either way she looked at it.

"_You PER- MMF!" _

She _really_ liked his lips.

* * *

**Behind the Bars**

**1 . . . **

**W**** o r l d **_**W**__**ar**_**III **

* * *

_Every time you attack,  
it doesn't drive me to fight you back  
and then I know  
that I'll never let it be  
World War III. _

* * *

She should have known better than to be out at this time of night. She had gotten off late from work and she had no choice but to walk home, her ride was in the shop and all her friends were out at the bar right now. They were probably drinking their asses off—and she was stuck walking home at one in the morning.

Her C.E.O had stayed late—and as his secretary, she had no choice but to stay behind and help him finish as well. Lucky for her though, he let her go home before him as he still had some papers he had to go through and she had made it obvious enough that she was about to fall sleep on him. And now, her walking wasn't even steady as she clambered messily down the pavement.

She cursed at her black ankle laced high heel boots and bent over to make sure both her boots' laces were tied properly before she ended up tripping on the shoe laces and breaking the three inch heels and possibly falling flat on her face or butt, either way, it would hurt. She cursed at her luck when she tied it wrong, having to retie it again before she stood up only to stagger a bit before balancing herself.

She reached a hand into the pocket of black denim shorts to make sure her cell phone was still there in case one of her drunken assed friends decided to still have a mind. She tried to remember which speed dial number Shikamaru was— knowing he would know better than to get himself drunk. She nodded when she memorized the single digit before hugging her black blazer closer to herself to hide the white silk v-neck sleeveless blouse underneath.

Her jade eyes scanned the area again to make sure there were no rapists that might jump out of her from a random dark alley. The lights of a nearby post light flickered once before turning off completely. She groaned to herself before she stopped walking completely. She let her eyes get used to the dark surroundings before they made out shadows around her.

She shivered; she'd no idea this safer and higher classed part of Konoha was still so… scary and _empty_ during nighttime. She wondered where everybody was.

((Honk! Honk!))

She nearly tripped on her own feet when she turned to the street to see a crowd of cars racing down the street. Her eyes widened as she stared at the cars that blew right pass her, they were going at least 100 MPH! She twitched when she saw a probably customized painted orange Bugatti Veyron drive by, the window scrolling down to show the face of a grinning blonde haired, cerulean blue eyed boy. He had whisker marks on his cheeks and she gritted her teeth when he winked at her and flashed his shining white teeth at her before racing off again, waving and screaming.

"Sorry babe! Can't give you a ride!"

She watched his bright Bugatti take off before she scowled. "Idiot…as if I'd want a ride from a _street racer_…" she mumbled to herself before clicking down the sidewalk once more, ignoring the speedy passing cars. It was then that she heard sirens and she realized why the street racers were all racing out of the city. They were being chased by a group of Black Ops (ANBU) cars.

She slowed down as she passed by a small street and gasped when she saw a pair of headlights blind her sight. She stumbled and muttered a curse as she hit the brick wall beside her, and the lights of the car turned off. She heard the sound of a door opening and slamming shut and a man cursing as he walked over to where she stood.

She widened her eyes when he grabbed her arm, "Let me go!" she yelled before a hand clasped over her mouth. She mumbled incoherent words into his hand before biting it forcefully. He yelled a quick curse before glaring at her and she gasped at the sight of his eyes. They were pitch black; like onyx and they showed no emotion at all. She stared at him in fright before he dragged her and tossed her into the passenger seat of the car before he went to the other side and got in as well.

She struggled to get out but he leaned over and her down to the back of her seat, "Oi. You live near here?" he asked simply. She glared at him, not answering his question. He sighed before his hand moved to her waist and she gasped when she felt him reach under her shirt, she struggled again but he had her arms behind her back. "Look. Easy way or hard way, you pick. Just answer my questions and I promise, nothing will happen to you…" he whispered and she inwardly shivered at the sound of his deep bass toned voice.

By the look of him, she knew he was more built than her and she would have no chance in attacking him. She sighed deeply before looking away from his gaze, "Yea, I do." she turned when she felt him give her a deadpanning stare and she bared her teeth before answering his unspoken question, "Bella Terra Apartments Complex." she mumbled and she widened her eyes when she felt him reaching over and doing something, "Hey what are you—!" she heard a click and stared down to see he had seat belted her.

She stared at him and breathed heavily as he fell back into his own seat and turned on the engine. At once; she knew that she was about to go on the worst ride of her life. She gave him a fearful gaze and would have been charmed when he sent a dark smirk her way if she wasn't so scared out of her wit at the moment.

"Safety first, _right_?" he lifted one corner of his lips and showed part of his teeth before his hand grabbed the clutch, put it on drive and—"Don't jump out if you're even thinking about it. It _**will**_ hurt." he warned her the first and last time and she took time to register everything he just said before she felt her heart pop out of her chest.

He revved the engine and let it purr loudly once before he stepped on the gas pedal and—"_**AHHHHHHHHHH**_!" she screamed as he speeded out of the alley and made a sharp turn to enter the street, before she knew what was going on, they were already at more than 60 MPH and she could only clutch the seatbelt tightly as her ears rang with the sounds of sirens that were too far away to catch up, and her eyes willed themselves not to shut close as she watched him dodge upcoming cars.

He kept his foot on the gas pedal and she watched the meter move from 100 to 120 in just seconds. Her eyes widened when she saw the familiar orange Bugatti up ahead. The man beside her matched his pace with the orange Bugatti and rolled down his window, the orange car doing the same. The man stuck his head out of the window and twitched at the grinning blonde idiot in the other car. It was all she could do not to scream at him to watch the road, but he and the other guy in the orange Bugatti were leading the pack of cars that were probably fleeing the city.

"Oi! Dobe! I'm going somewhere else, go find hideout at the Hyuuga's main mansion and get in the underground parking space. Ask him to lend you a room for the night, and call me, got it?" he spoke to the blonde as they sped straight pass the red light, in which Sakura could just squeeze her eyes shut in horror at the ticket he would be getting for well… he'd probably just get thrown in jail.

She heard the blonde yell back, and inwardly cringed at his loud voice. "Yo! Teme! You're going to the hot chick's place? You lucky ass! You better tell me the details later!" she wanted to jump over there knock his teeth out, "Alright! Neji's place right? I'll call you when I get there, so don't get too into your…activities! Hahaha!" the blonde roared in laughter, "Hey pretty lady, Sasuke-teme's pretty rough, I say you prepare yourself for an all nighter! Tell Sasuke to let you call me if you need something more soothing, the name's Naruto, by the way!" he winked at Sakura before he sped off, making a sharp left turn and disappearing from view.

The man, "Sasuke," cursed at the blonde before he too sped up and made a right turn, leaving the pack of fleeing cars behind them. "Bella Terra, right?" he asked her. She nearly jumped at the sound of his voice and nodded quietly before she felt him slow down a bit. The road they were currently on was empty, the city's curfew was 2:00 A.M. and so everyone was probably asleep already.

They stayed quiet the rest of the trip, and she opted to stare out of the window instead of looking at the road ahead of them. He had "_slowed"_ down, but he was still going 80 MPH. She sighed once before closing her eyes, hoping for this nightmare to end soon.

Her "driver" took the time to turn to her swiftly and examined her thoroughly before registering her face into his brain. She had _**bright**_ jade green eyes, and he took note that she was as easy to read as a book; his total opposite. She had shoulder length wavy _pink_ hair and side swept bangs that gave a sense of mysteriousness to her. She had a curvy cat-like nose, and actually her eyes resembled cat eyes as well save for the tiny slits that thank goodness she doesn't have. Her lips was a pale rosy color and her mouth was quite small, it was as big as the width of her nose and so her face was in a good proportion. Her darker pink eyelashes were long and fanned the skin near her eyes softly as her eyelids were closed. The colors were just too…_bright_.

She stood out in a crowd like a sore thumb; he'd have to make sure the sirens wouldn't recognize her near him.

X

"_Look, Nadeshiko, I have to go! No matter what happens, this race is going to decide my garage's fate! I'm the mechanic; their crewman and they need me there. You're not going to stop me!" Ayumu declared to his wife defiantly as he grabbed his tool box and readied to march to the door. His wife pulled back his arm and looked at him furiously._

"_Haruno Ayumu! Imagine what could happen to you! The sirens were after us already just last week! If this race gets overexposure, you're going to get caught! Don't do this! Our little girl's only seven years old, don't make her lose her father in just one day! Please, Ayumu-kun! I don't want my baby growing up knowing that her dad was locked up behind the bars during her childhood!" Nadeshiko screamed as she held on tightly to his arm._

_A small, pink haired, green eyed baby girl watched her parents from her spot on the staircase, making sure they wouldn't spot her as she took in the scene before her, listening, and trying to understand what she could at her age. _

"_Nadeshiko, have more faith in us. We're not going to get caught, I promise you. This is an underground thing, we've made sure to keep it low profile. The sirens would have never learned about any of this!" Ayumu tried to persuade her into letting him go. "Besides, why don't you go with me? We need as many import models we can get. This race is the climax of a lifetime!"_

_Nadeshiko stared at him in disbelief before she calmly took a breath in and out. "Ayumu. I'm not going anywhere near that race. If you want our baby to grow up living a horrific life, you go ahead. But I'm not going to let her spend her childhood with her father _and_ mother in jail. I'm definitely not sending her to _my_ mother. I'm raising her, and I'm giving up import modeling. I've had enough of starting and ending your races and being seen as a trophy. So you go ahead then. When you get jailed though, you can make sure to remember my words." she ended their conversation promptly before turning to head upstairs. _

_Sakura hurriedly ran up before her mom could catch her snooping. Ayumu stared at his wife's retreating back before sighing loudly and gripped the handle of the tool box even harder, one hand reaching up to adjust his cap carefully before he reached for the doorknob and opened the door._

_He stepped outside._

_And that was the end._

X

Her eyes snapped open and she immediately registered the scene that was replayed in her mind as a dream. The speed of the car had woken her up due to a sharp turn that had her body tossing to the side violently. Her vivid jade eyes peered to the left at her "kidnapper" and she narrowed them when she saw him popping open a can of beer with one hand, the other on the steering wheel loosely.

Instincts kicked in and she immediately leaned over and despite her height of 5'4'', her legs were long enough for her to throw one over to the pedals and she immediately stepped on the brake, making the car screech to a sudden and loud stop in the middle of the midnight. She inwardly thanked Kami that the roads were empty and lifeless, she didn't know what would've happened if there was a car in the next lane.

Sasuke immediately twitched and looked over at her like she was crazy, "What the hell are you doing, woman?" he asked her in a monotone yet loud voice, signaling that he was angry. Sakura just narrowed her eyes and glared him, scowling at him all the while before she took her leg up and over back to her own seat.

"Look; if there's one thing I _hate_—its drunk drivers. So you better keep your hands off that beer while you drive, or I'm just going to get off. I'm not going to die at twenty one, and if I do, I'll make sure to beat the _shit_ out of you in hell." she stated swiftly before leaning back into her chair as if nothing had just happened. When he didn't budge, she groaned and turned to him, "Buddy, are you going to drive, or you want me to take over? You kidnapped me, offered to give me a ride home, and now you're acting like a moron. At least have _some_ sympathy and just get me home, please. I'm sleepy, and I'm tired, and all I wanna do is going _home_."

It was silent for a couple seconds before he smirked at her. She looked at him suspiciously as she watched him roll down his window and throw the still full can of beer out into the street—there was a small sound where the can collided with the cement and she heard the faint sound of the beer sloshing in the can. He held his gaze with her before rolling up the window and leaning in close, she shivered inwardly and stood her ground, not moving back in fear despite her widened eyes.

"Hn…as fast as possible?" he gave her no room to answer before his feet hit the gas pedal again and the car immediately sped off into the dim light of the sky. Sakura screeched in surprise as she watched the speed meter go up in just mere seconds—she widened her eyes in horror, they were going at 140 MPH.

This was worst than any roller coaster she had ever been on.

One because well…there _were_ no safety precautions.

Two…this was a _man_—a _human being_ (capable of **screwing over**)—driving this car, _not_ a machine.

And three, because somehow she missed the thrill of a stomach flipping drop on a coaster rather than this stomach tumbling speed ride that could _kill_ her in mere _seconds_.

_Dear Kami-sama…help me, please._

X

Her racing heart had finally managed to calm down a little as he had finally slowed down to a "considerable" speed of 40 MPH as they were approaching her apartment building soon. She took off the hand she held on her chest before letting out a long, deep, loud, and obvious sigh before she squeezed her hands together in a praying motion. "Thank you Kami-sama...thank you!" she uttered to herself before her eyes flickered to the left to look at her current partner in the car.

He calmly drove straight down the quiet street, heading towards the large sign that read Bella Terra Apartment Complexes. He just gave her a look of amusement as he watched her pray for a split second. This girl was too much for him to handle; he didn't want to speak more than just a sentence to her or he was afraid she would go on talking for the rest of the time in the car, and he would have gone nuts like how he did with the other chatty women that wanted to see that little buddy in his pants.

She was different though. And he was learning that quickly. "Your car goes from not moving at all to 60 MPH in less than three seconds, please tell me I'm dreaming but, are you driving a SSC Ultimate Aero?" she asked inquisitively as she looked out the window, into the side mirror outside to see the rear of the amazingly fast car.

He loved his car; that much she could tell. It looked like he gave it a carwash nearly everyday or if at worst, every _week_. The baby was nice and shiny, sleek and black as it looked when he probably first bought it. There were no marks on it, not even one scratch and she was impressed. He was an underground racer, yet his car was flawless; an obvious sign of his often victories. She ran a finger across the inside of the door and found not even one speck of dust on it, she blew her finger before looking at it; impressed.

Sasuke gave her a look of incredulity before turning right slowly and into the underground parking lot. He stopped at the gate right before the entrance and Sakura just leaned over smoothly to slide in her room card before taking it back out of the slot. The gate opened and she moved back onto her seat.

He inwardly mused about this. They'd known each other for just a couple minutes and already, they were comfortable nearly sitting on top of each other. Either she was just oblivious or shameless. And either he didn't care or he enjoyed it. He quickly brushed it off and tried to forget any trace of thinking about it.

He ran back to the question she had just asked him and he left unanswered before he spoke to her, "Aa. You know cars?" he inquired, interested slightly by her knowledge.

Sakura's eyes narrowed and dilated before they returned to their natural shade; all this went unnoticed by him. "I'd be surprised if I didn't. My dad was a mechanic for his crew of underground racers. My mom was an import model and spent the first ten years after she turned twenty one to be nearly like a prize in every race. It's only natural they'd give birth to a child that has some knowledge about motors, wouldn't you think?" she smiled bitterly unbeknownst to him as he parked the car in one try.

She opened the door and got out before he could speak another word. He saw the color tone in her eyes shift though, as she got out. Her just a minute ago bright jade eyes turned a dull shade of sorrow and reminisce. He brushed it off and harshly berated himself for wondering about such a stupid thing.

_Che… _

X

_It was at 2:13 A.M. _

_The sirens were on the chase for the two crews that were facing off that night in the heart popping street race. The streets had been empty; but there was an inside job, and the secretive race had been discovered by the sirens. Every last bit of them had forgotten about the race and ran to their cars in frenzy, all wanting to escape and leave the city before they would get arrested. _

_Then… the minute hand of the clock had flashed and a minute later—_

_2:14 A.M._

_Ayumu was shot._

"_Get out of the car!"_

"_No! Get your own ride!"_

"_GET OFF THE FUCKING CAR!"_

"_This is MY car! I have a wife and kid at home!"_

"_That's lovely—GET OUT!"_

"_NO!"_

"_I'LL SHOOT YOUR ASS OFF!"_

"_I—!"_

_((Bang!))_

X

(("Otou-chan?"))

(("Ayumu-kun!"))

(("…Na…de…shi…ko…"))

(("_**AYUMU**_!"))

(("Sa…kura…chan…!"))

(("Tou-chan?"))

_((BEEEEP!)) _

…

…

…

"_Tou-chan…?" _

X

Sakura sighed as the golden colored doors of the elevator slid open and she walked out first, waiting for him to follow her before she led him to the door of her apartment at the corner of the left hallway. She turned to look at him and raised an eyebrow as she got out her keys, "Am I supposed to invite you in for tea after you kidnapping me as thanks?" she was being sarcastic—and just to tick her off, he gave a charming smirk.

"Why not?" he answered back, sarcasm dripping equally off his sentence. She sneered and stuck her tongue out childishly before slamming the door open and crossed her arms as he entered and closed the door behind him. He gave her a sarcastic look, "What? Aren't you going to go get me tea?" he referred back to her earlier offer.

She furrowed her eyebrows before turning in a flash and nearly marched to where he assumed her kitchen was. He noted the fancy designing of her apartment and wasn't surprised. Bella Terra Apartments Complex was probably the most expensive apartment complex in Konoha. The walls of her home were a dark shade of chocolate brown with orange lining. Her lights had orange and white coverings that shone off golden colored lights. Fancy indeed.

The color theme reminded him of _autumn_.

Funny.

She looked like a complete _spring_ to him.

(Pink, green…really, you think so too.)

He took note of the flawless grand piano at the back of her apartment, right in front of the tall, glass windows overlooking the city. The white curtains that were equally as tall were drawn back to let in the light of the moon shine upon the piano. He blinked before looking at her in the kitchen, brewing the tea. (She really made him tea?) He walked to the kitchen and stopped in front of the island and took a seat on one of the black stools.

"You play piano?"

She noticeably jumped in surprise at the sound of his voice and swiftly turned around to glare at him before turning back around to continue on with her job. She remained silent, letting the air thicken before she let out a sigh and shook her head. "No…my dad did. He passed it onto me as a present, hoping I would learn how to play but…I'm not really a musician," she let out a soft sorrowful chuckle before turning silent again.

"Your dad?"

She nodded.

"…Where is he?"

She stiffened and Sasuke's eyes narrowed, taking notice of her tense form.

She turned around abruptly and set a tea pot onto the island along with a cup and pushed it towards him. She smiled—something she wouldn't do unless she were trying to change the subject.

"Here's your tea!"

He regretted all of this—taking her into his car—going into her home—meeting her. This was just pure _trouble, he knew it was_.

X

"You don't have a place to stay…do you?" she asked him as she sat in the stool next to him at the island. He picked up the cup of tea and registered it was green tea before drinking it slowly. She didn't watch him, she fixed her gaze on a picture hanging onto her steel fridge by a magnet. He followed her gaze and looked at the picture.

It was her…and a man he presumed to be her dad. She looked barely a year old—but he knew it was her, pink hair and all. Her dad had the same pair of jade eyes he did but his hair was a light blonde color, he oddly reminded Sasuke of his annoying blonde friend.

He turned his gaze back to her to find her staring intently at him, her stare blank and he immediately knew she had caught him staring at that picture. Her gaze was warning, inwardly pleading him not to discuss about family.

He didn't intend to.

"Hn…" he replied to her previous question.

She took it as a no—knew it was a no and sighed. "You are just trouble for me," he inwardly snorted. She read his mind. "But because I'm a nice person, who was brought up with manners and a kind outlook on life," he wanted to snort loud and clear for her to see how wrong she was, "and so I'll let you stay. How long until you leave?"

He didn't ask for her help—hadn't even planned on asking on her help, didn't want to live with her, but now that she mentioned it, she was the only person he could turn to for a hideout place until it was safe for him to leave.

"…Until the dobe tells me it's safe to go out again,"

Sakura blinked before smiling slightly, "You mean that blonde guy from earlier? That annoyingly rude and loud dumbass?" her hand twitched as she remembered the blonde's earlier words and innuendos.

Sasuke just smirked and continued drinking his tea. Sakura sighed, "Well it's no use then… I have a spare room anyway. BUT!" she narrowed her eyes, "If I catch you sneaking around, trying to peep on me, or rape me in any way, or even if I have a sense you're going to rape me, I'm going to KICK you out. LITERALLY." she glared at him until he couldn't hold back and let out a smooth chuckle.

He smirked at her, "Of course."

Trouble was part of life—he'd get over it.

Sakura sighed and puffed her cheeks before looking away.

Trouble was a common thing—she would get used to it.

X

That's what they thought.

* * *

**I know, I know, I am slightly an idiot. **

**Alright, I'm a HUGE idiot.**

**But I had this idea in my head and I kept typing and typing until I couldn't stop typing and now I just abandoned all my stories to make a new one.**

**Someone shoot me please?**

**But tell me what you think? :) **

**20 reviews if you like it, and if they're positive, I'll continue it. **

**Reviews make me write. (:**

_Lots of love,_

_XOXO Kaze-chan _


	2. Day by Day

Summary: //SasuSaku// AU She should have known better than to extend her help to him. Now, she has to deal with the many temptations clawing at her with the undeniably sexy street racer in her home. "Are you seducing me?!" "…Are you seduced?" "N-No!" "Then no, I'm not." Slight crack.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, just the plot.

Rating: T (Some content not suitable for children)

Warning: OOC!Sasuke!

* * *

"_I-I-It's really c-cold…"_

His eyebrow rose.

"…_And?"_

She glared.  
He blinked.

"_I don't have a jacket with me."_

Why couldn't she just say what she wanted?

"…_So?"_

An even darker glare.

"…_Sasuke."_

She stepped closer to him.

"…_Aa…?"_

He didn't know where this was going,  
but so far… he was liking it.

"…_you have a jacket, I don't, and I'm cold…"_

She stated the obvious,  
he could only stare as her hand raised to his shoulder.

"…_And…?"_

((_Twitch_))

He felt her lean in closer, and he leaned in as well

"…_I want…"_

There was a _lot_ of sexual tension in this room suddenly.

"…"

Her hand moved to his jacket,

his eyes watched her hand slide down the zipper

"_I…want…your JACKET, DAMN IT!" _

Her hands ripped off his jacket

"…"

((_Touch_))

She froze on the spot,

he gently took the jacket from her hand

((_Glare_))

"_Sasuke. I'm cold. Why are you taking your jacket from me?"_

A smirk.

"_Hn…"_

She _**hated**_ his smirks.

"_What are you trying to—!"_

He proceeded to take off the rest of her clothes

(And threw his _jacket_ away too)

"_You won't be needing a jacket to keep you warm."_

Blink.

"_Why not?"_

(_deepdarkrichsilky_) Chuckle.

"_Because…you have _**me**_,"_

Generally  
body heat was the best (_au natural_) way to warm up (_naturally_).

* * *

**Behind the Bars**

**2 . . . **

**D_ ay _**by **D_ ay _**

* * *

_Oh girl  
I cry, cry  
You're my all,  
Say goodbye, bye  
Oh my love  
don't lie, lie  
You're my heart—  
say goodbye. _

* * *

She woke up feeling as if something weird had happened. She dreamt of a stranger whom she let stay in her home. But she'd never thought it would be true because she was Haruno Sakura—smart and clever; she would never ever do something such as letting a _stranger_ live with her. And yet she felt as if she was not alone in her luxurious Bella Terra apartment.

Things in her apartment always felt comfy and relaxing—never _paranoid_. But her _sixth_ sense was telling her there was something or _someone_, inside her home that she didn't or maybe _did_ _know_ about. Then again, she did have a _tendency_ to forget things easily overnight. With that thought in mind, she sat up from her bed, letting her lightweight pale green summer blanket slide off her body to reveal her in a long sleeve unbuttoned white Henley that showed off her cleavage rather sultrily if not innocently.

She slid her legs out from under the blanket and to the side, off the bed. Her slender legs were shown until they hit her mid thighs where a pair of maroon colored cotton lounge shorts covered everything else from view. The light bounced off the small white gold heart shaped bubble pendant of her silver necklace and radiated off small sparks of the color spectrum.

She inwardly berated herself for not putting on socks. She'd been misled by the summer weather—believing it wasn't going to be very cold during nighttime. But alas, to her dismay, the wind had blown coldly and wildly as well, and brought along a small chill with it that she wasn't prepared for at _six sharp_ in the morning.

Her lips cooled nearly immediately and she licked her lips to moisten them before standing up and shook her wavy hair once. Her jade eyes looked at the closed door of her bedroom and she hesitantly walked over to it and her hands reached for the doorknob. She gulped, that sixth sense coming back again, and reluctantly turned the knob, the door effectively swinging open at her command.

She walked outside the comfort zone of her room and into the small open hallway of her apartment. She took a small peak out at the rest of her apartment before staring straight ahead at the door across her bedroom door that led to the second bedroom that was usually a spare and often very empty, save for the bed she put there just in case.

The door was open and… the bed _wasn't_ empty.

She squeaked.

In fact, it was occupied by a man that she thought must be labeled as "hot, _sexy_, dream hunk" by the ordinary women. But of course, Sakura was never one for "ordinary," not just by physical appearance (_you know_; green eyes, pink hair!), but by her far more mature attitude despite her age.

There on the bed, was the exact replica of the man she had "dreamed" of letting into her home…except she was very sure this was not a dream, and he was real because he sat there, fully awake, using _her_ laptop. She tried, vaguely, to decide whether having this man here with her was a good thing or a bad thing.

…It's a little bit of both, actually.

Come on, she was just a human person. And humans _do_ have _hormones_ that tend to rage and act up occasionally due to some sort of situations. And for Sakura—this was just that kind of "some sort of situation" that would lead most humans' hormones to rampaging within them.

She inwardly calmed herself and tried to retrace last nights' events and how this incredibly handsome pale skinned and dark featured man had ended up in her home—in a _separate_ bedroom, of course. She would never allow herself to lose her virginity unconsciously, and so she was and is a _virgin_.

Of course while she was examining this bizarre situation she'd landed herself in, her companion had also taken note of her presence—and was now by far more amused than bemused at how distracted this pink haired woman was. You might as well say that she had totally forgotten that she wasn't alone in the _bedroom_. He inwardly smirked at her as he watched how her jade eyes glazed over in a duller shade—an obvious sign she was deep in thought.

She was staring at him, yet it was as if she didn't see him. It was fascinating if not a little strange. He coughed to get her attention and to draw her back from whatever land she was currently preoccupied in.

He watched how her eyes narrowed and a small dash of red had appeared on her cheeks after being caught looking so empty headed. She coughed back and pulled out the office chair from the desk and sat down, turning to face him. Her eyes stopped on _her_ MacBook, currently on _his_ lap. He was wearing some pajamas consisting of black and red plaid drawstring pants and a black v-neck she had given him—_men's_ pajamas and she had some because it belonged to _someone_.

He continued to keep his gaze on her and she looked away quickly before trying to get her blush to fade away before meeting his eyes. She locked gazes with him and she spoke—her tone firm and _awake_.

"So…I'm not so sure how you got here…and if you got here with my _willing_ consent, then sorry for my bad overnight memory lapse. But since you seem to be made at home, I'll assume I did let you in here myself. Beyond that though—do tell me the story how you got here again," she raised an eyebrow at him and inwardly twitched as he simply smirked and closed whatever he was doing on _her_ MacBook and placed it on the bed beside him, closed.

"My SSC Ultimate Aero," he just said casually as if they were simply discussing cars and not talking about a life changing story about how he got here. He kept his eyes locked with hers as the shade of green slowly darkened and lightened as she registered the name of that amazing car that was probably God's Gift bestowed upon any lucky bastard that owned one—in this case, the man in the same room as her.

Slowly, her eyes widened by a fraction when she remembered most of last nights' events and she sighed. "Oh yeah… you kidnapped me, held me hostage, and made me give you my address and then proceeded to somehow get me into letting you into my home. So I will safely say that there were no _sexual_ encounters."

He scoffed at her first cliché unspoken guess—sexual encounter, _really_? Did he _look_ like that kind of person? Besides his underground status—he _physically_ seemed like a nice guy.

She coughed and cleared her throat before extending a hand out to him, and he looked at it, amused. She wanted a nice polite handshake _after_ all that had happened. She blushed faintly and refused to meet his gaze anymore, embarrassed of her "mood swings."

"Um…it's a little late especially with all that happened but I don't feel comfortable living with a person I'm not in agreement with so…might as well make this work," she raised her jade eyes and met his onyx ones, "I'm Haruno Sakura. Personal Assistant to the C.E.O. of Hatake Corporation," she hesitated, her lips quivering before sending him a shy smile.

He blinked before letting a sly smirk grace his lips, reaching out his own hand to grasp her way smaller one in his. He shook it firmly twice before looking up to look at her. "Uchiha Sasuke. Please…_take care of me_," he chuckled deeply before lifting the corner of his mouth up, showing some teeth charmingly.

Sakura twitched before sending a glare towards him. "Luckily for me, I don't get charmed so easily, you can smirk all you want but you're going to be miles away from anywhere _near_ the inside of my pants," she said before standing up abruptly and turned out of the room.

He smirked wider,

_Liar…keh… _

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"_Okaa-chan, where are you going?" Sakura murmured from her place on the staircase, rubbing her eyes sleepily. She hugged her snow white teddy bear close to her as she stepped down the stairs, keeping her innocent jade eyes on her mother in front of her. She stopped on the last step and sat down, her head tilting upwards to look at Nadeshiko._

_A soft smile painted itself on Nadeshiko's face as she bent down a little until she was eye level with the small girl. "Sakura-chan, tomorrow, you turn ten, right?" she asked, confirming the date in her mind. Today was March 27, and tomorrow would be March 28—her little girl's birthday. Sakura's eyes shone for a brief second as she nodded eagerly._

_Nadeshiko let out a soft sigh before sitting down beside her on the staircase; she wrapped her arms around Sakura and breathed in her scent evenly. "Well, Sakura-chan, we're going to go visit your Tou-chan tomorrow in the morning. I'm going out right now to get him some flowers. It's cold outside though, dear, so you're going to stay home, alright?" Sakura nodded in obediently, "Good girl, stay in your bedroom and don't open the door for anyone. I'll be home soon, why don't you write your Tou-chan a cute letter, hm?" Nadeshiko smiled as she placed some misplaced hair behind Sakura's ear._

_Sakura grinned and nodded, "Okay, I will! Okaa-chan will be back soon…right?" she blinked as she looked at her mother for confirmation. Nadeshiko chuckled—her voice warm and nodded. Sakura smiled and pecked Nadeshiko on the cheek gently, "Okay then, come home safely, Okaa-chan!" _

_Nadeshiko nodded and pecked her on the forehead before standing up; Sakura followed her action and stood up. Nadeshiko placed a hand on the small of her back and ushered her upstairs, "Okay then, up you go into your bedroom, Sakura. I'll be back soon. Don't come out and open the door or answer the phone for anyone, okay? If the phone rings, don't pick up unless you see your Kaa-chan's name, got it?" _

"_Got it, I won't open doors or answer the phone for anyone unless it's Okaa-chan!" Sakura repeated before tumbling upstairs. She turned around and waved to Nadeshiko a final time before disappearing upstairs. _

_Nadeshiko turned to look at the clock—9:15 and let out a sigh before opening the door and stepped outside. _

_Just like_ he _did._

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Sakura blinked repeatedly as she stared at the plate of food in front of her. She rubbed her eyes a couple times before gaping, looking up at Sasuke with eager eyes. "You…you know how to cook?" she asked quietly, still taking in the plate of food. Eggs, bread, tomatoes, and lettuce. It looked so neat—like it came from a restaurant and not from an underground racer that surprisingly knew how to _cook_, better than _she_ did.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her as he pierced into a piece of tomato with his fork, bringing it into his mouth before looking at her incredulously. "You believe in stereotypes?" he answered her question with a question. She blushed in embarrassment before puffing up her cheeks, pouting, and turned away quickly.

How very stereotypical of her to ask such a thing. She berated herself inwardly before letting out a sniff and began to eat their breakfast—cooked by the _underground racer_. "Well, it's a surprise, okay? If I was some type of criminal—you'd be surprised if I knew how to cook, too!" Sakura furrowed her eyebrows as she plopped a piece of tomato into her mouth as well.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, "You're a _woman_—it's only natural you know how to cook, I wouldn't be surprised." his tone was flat and monotonous; it made her feel sort of like an idiot. A big idiot. Especially with how he always sounded so deadpanning, as if it was only obvious and one of the biggest facts in the world.

At his comment, Sakura gaped before giving him a sharp glare, "What—not only are you an underground illegal racer, but you're also a sexist pig?" she twitched, inwardly having half a mind to throw him out of her house. "Besides, we don't always know how to cook." she snapped before picking up the glass of orange juice.

He smirked at her and leaned forward, placing down his fork and knife. "Are you saying _you_ can't cook?" he chuckled, catching her comment quickly and retorting with a question he knew was a _fact_. He watched how she stopped dead, stopping mid-chew and dropping her fork onto the plate, her eyes narrowing.

She coughed; a blush staining her cheeks as she cleared her throat, his smirk drew wider as she turned her head to avoid his gaze quickly. "I'm too busy with work—I would never have time to cook!" she said rather embarrassedly before turning back to look at him when her blush lightened slightly.

Sasuke leaned back into his chair, dropping the tension between them before drawling lazily, "Then why do you have things for cooking?" he noticed how she had the things necessary for cooking anything—she had most sauces and spices, a fridge stocked with meats and vegetables, and ready to eat fruit sprawled about her kitchen.

Sakura blinked before looking at him straight in the eye—as if about to state something very serious. "Because, my boyfriend comes over to cook for me from time to time," it was like a warning, and he knew it was. She was taken—unavailable—in a relationship—her MySpace status wasn't "_Single_" and she didn't cuddle by herself—she had _someone_.

It was silent for a couple seconds before he opened his mouth to speak again, "Che, you really are a hopeless _woman_." he didn't care about her boyfriend—he had no interest in her love life and he wasn't planning on liking her or "falling" for her anytime soon. He hated romance and the deep roots of it—there would be no way in hell he'd ever like a woman for more than the "_pleasure_".

Sakura gritted her teeth and keeled herself, reining in the anger and the urge to just stab her fork deep into his chest and watch him try to dislodge it to no avail—she was sadistic at certain times. "_Excuse_ _me_, while I make a phone call," she muttered, her voice lower than usual and he smirked at the way her cheeks puffed red when she was angry.

She grabbed the phone that was beside her on the dining table and dialed in a number quickly, keeping her eyes on her companion evenly. Sasuke continued eating, not breaking the eye contact, just smirking at her. _"Yo!" _Sakura momentarily ignored her dark haired apartment-mate as she heard the drawling voice of her boss—her C.E.O.

"Kakashi-san, I'm afraid I can't come to work today. A friend of mine just recently moved in with me and I want to take the day off to make sure he's accustomed to everything, is that alright?" Sakura moved her eyes back on Sasuke who raised a fine eyebrow at her as if telling her he knew what she meant was _'to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid.' _

"_Ohhh…a roommate? And a _he_? Why, Sakura, you know Gaara won't approve. Who knows what you kids and your hormones can do, especially living with a man, no less!" _his voice was teasing yet he managed to coat it with a slick serious tone that she knew was _fake_. Sakura twitched—half a mind to run over there and smack her C.E.O's face in.

"Kakashi. I'm twenty one, I'm quite sure I can control myself from doing anything stupid. I'll tell Gaara about it, and he _will_ approve." she followed Sasuke's eyes and glared at him when he sent her a smirk, knowing exactly what she was discussing with her boss.

"_Well, I'd sure love to know how you're going to get your overprotective madman of a boyfriend to approve of this, something kinky perhaps—!" _

"I'm going. And tomorrow—I'll make sure I get you to do extra paperwork, Kakashi. Goodbye." she hung up on the silver haired pervert she called her boss and glared at Sasuke, daring him to make a retort about the conversation.

He just smirked, "Hn…"

What a smart man.

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_Dear Otou-chan,_

_I miss you! Okaa-chan counted for me and said it's been…two years since I saw you, Tou-chan. Tou-chan…I miss you. Why don't you come home? Okaa-chan said you passed away—but if you can pass away, then you can pass back, can't you, Tou-chan? I'm turning ten tomorrow! And Okaa-chan said we're going to visit you tomorrow! Whenever we visit you, I never see you though. Okaa-chan takes us to this stone thing, and it has your name and these two years on it, but I don't get it. Why aren't you there whenever we come to visit you? Okaa-chan says you can't appear because you don't exist anymore. But I don't believe Okaa-chan, even if people pass away, can't I still see you somehow? You can come and let us see you from Heaven, can't you? Kami-sama is a nice person—won't he let you come visit? Oh, and are you an angel now, Tou-chan? Obaa-san told me that people that go to Heaven become angels! Tou-chan…I love you! Please don't leave me and Okaa-chan anymore, Okaa-chan is always so sad. We miss you! _

_Why did you leave us?_

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Sakura looked at Sasuke with a raised eyebrow as she emerged from her bedroom—freshly dressed and showered. She was dressed in a simple white v-neck tee and faded blue denim shorts. Her hair was still wet from her shower and slightly mussed from the towel drying. He was on _her_ MacBook again—looking so comfy, as if it belonged to _him_ and this apartment was _his_, and not _hers_.

That was an annoyance she would soon be needing to tell him about. She sat down on the opposite couch of him, and looked at him curiously. He looked up from the MacBook and met her stare before he raised a fine brow at her impending staring. She narrowed her eyes at him before crossing her arms and nibbled on her bottom lip in thought for a while before she opened her mouth to finally speak. "You can't come out of this place until… _Naruto—_if that was his name— tells you it's safe…right?" she looked at him questioningly.

Sasuke closed the MacBook and set it on the coffee table before narrowing his own eyes and nodded in a silent answer. She inwardly scoffed—she'd have to become accustomed to the fact that this "housemate" of hers wasn't going to be a good social buddy. She just ignored the fact for a small moment and continued speaking as if unaffected by his careless nod, "Which means you probably will be staying here for a while. So that excludes you from any plans of mine whenever I wish to eat _out_. And _certainly_ that also excludes you from any upcoming _races_ you _were_ going to partake in, correct?" she was close to glaring at him now, as if daring him to admit otherwise.

He raised his eyes to level with hers until he took in her glare and responded to it with a cool emotionless gaze that showed no interest in her glare. "I can go outside when I _want_. The cops don't own me—and I'm not scared of them," at this she scoffed to which he glared, "I'm only here because it would be just trouble if they did somehow _manage_ to catch me—not because I'm _scared_." he hissed at the offending word. "They don't have confirmations of any of _us," _she knew 'us' referred to the other street racers, "Only how our rides look; we all tend to drive something too flashy for our own damned goods. They'd recognize an underground car in a minute—no racer has a license plate."

Sakura rolled her eyes and smirked momentarily as she leaned back against the couch and sent him a superior stare. "Really? How stupid can you underground racers get these days. Flashy cars—high speed driving on the streets even when it's _not_ a race—and then recognizable no license plates. You should do to at least _have_ a license plate during the day, and if you have enough money to get yourself an _SSC Ultimate Aero_," at this she inwardly gushed over for a second, "then you should have enough money to get an extra car that's not as _flashy_. Any person that's not an idiot would recognize your car is more than just a hybrid—it's a _prize_—as soon as you speed past a red light. And do not avoid the question—you will not partake in any of the races, _will_ you?"

He rolled his own eyes and closed them before answering her coolly. "Not even an **idiot** will show his face outside during this time. There _will_ be _no_ race." his voice was calm and collected and monotonous as always, he was assured that what he said was so correct, it made her think as if he was the one—the driving force behind all these races in the first place.

Suspicions are suspicions though and she kept her thoughts to herself. "Good. Because _**if**_ there are any races—you should see to it you have another place to stay. As soon as you step foot outside this apartment with the intention of partaking or even _attending_ any _possible_ race—I'm throwing you out and you'll be lucky enough for me not to just _turn you in_. This is your fault you know—kidnapping me and all. You should have known better, known that I have the ability to put you in harm's way so easily."

He opened his eyes and suddenly she felt a chill run up her spine as he looked into her eyes—more intense than any other time he had ever looked at her in the last twenty four hours they'd known each other rather _hostilely_. "I did not kidnap you. I _saved_ you." his voice was so cold and flat, she was somewhat scared of him and all of a sudden her thoughts turned to the fact that he was dangerous—and as much as she was capable of turning him in, he was even _more_ capable of _hurting_ her.

Her throat ran dry as she tuned in to what he just said. She felt another scoff—probably the fifth or so that day—about to come on, but held it back. "Tch, saved me? What _twisted_ thing are you hinting about? You '_saved_' me by throwing me in your car and demanding for me to tell you where I live or else you'd _rape_ me? Yeah, you know you sound like the _perfect_ _Superman_ right now." she finished sarcastically and gave him a sardonic glance, as if challenging him to prove her otherwise.

He seemed as calm as ever, she really felt like an idiot with each second passing by. "If I didn't throw your ass into my car—some other bloke would have. And they wouldn't just _threaten_ to rape you—they would've _just_ _raped_ _you_. And better yet—shoot you when they were finished," he sounded serious, and she knew he wasn't lying as he told her all of this.

It registered in her mind how she should actually be thankful for him—but she was much too terrified to come across that thought another time. She processed everything he just told her and shakily took in the fact. She had two possible events last night. One—the one that had happened, being thrown into Sasuke's car. Two—she could have been raped, then murdered. She knew that the second event was possible and would have probably happened had he not… _saved_ her.

It was the middle of the night and she was possibly the only person still awake to have witnessed any of the speeding cars and the loud sirens. She could have been a lead to the cops—and the racers didn't want that. It was the most likely thing that would have happened—she would have been disposed of before she would become a helping hand to the sirens. More or less—she was _walking alone_ at the dead of _after_ midnight. She had gotten lucky that the cars that had already passed by hadn't noticed her since it was much too dark—but the blonde guy in the orange Bugatti had, and if he noticed her, surely others would have. And she just lucked out even more when the blondie didn't seem like the type to shag defenseless women. And she just got way too lucky for her own good when it was _him_ that saw her and took her because—he wasn't the type to shag defenseless women either.

Her eyes softened and she felt her tightened jaw relax as her face lightened up and she turned to meet his eyes—this time more gently. She understood him. When he took her that night, he was trying to save her from _the end_. His threat was empty—even if she hadn't spoken of her address, he wouldn't have raped her either way. He was just smart enough to utilize the situation to his own benefits to where he could have found a good refuge.

"…I…" she didn't know what to say, she was speechless, "…you could have gone with that blonde guy…" she finally decided to mutter. "You didn't need me to find a good place to hide, you know. You could have left me there to die…I…" she looked away with a small embarrassed blush, "…thanks." she gave a small shy smile and tried to patch up the spots she'd already poked.

He closed his eyes and crossed his arms once more, feigning ignorance. "Hn. Hyuuga's place is probably infiltrated by racers right now. His underground hideout is infamous and most likely overcrowded—and also an overused spot that the cops will find out eventually. An unknown place like yours would be more secretive."

She didn't know if she was supposed to take that comment as an insult—an unknown place like hers, she scoffed—but decided to brush it off as a sign of her gratitude. Illegal as he was—at least he was intelligent. A thought suddenly occurred to her and she let out a soft laugh which raised an eyebrow from him. She grinned a little, "So that poor friend of yours. You told him to hide there even with this knowledge," she continued to laugh and he couldn't help but smirk a little.

"Hn…" he closed his eyes once more and relaxed, about to fall prey to a nice nap until her voice overtook him again.

"…Sasuke, right?" she whispered quietly, thankfully the apartment was silent enough for him to hear her.

"Aa." his reply was simple and she just rolled her eyes once more—but he didn't see it this time since he was finally managing to catch that ounce of sleep he'd missed last night.

"Right. And no—I still don't trust you. You are not to step foot outside of this place without letting me know and you are not allowed to take part in any races while you are living inside this apartment. Oh and…" she smirked as she worked this to her advantage, "You will offer up the keys to your SSC Ultimate Aero when I ask for it. It just so happens oh so conveniently that my own car is in the shop right now, so of course I will be needing a ride to anywhere I need to go to, just to make sure I don't walk around aimlessly at night and have myself killed!" she finished cheerily and grinned.

He was starting to wish he'd left her alone that night. What a minx she was.

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_Sakura frowned as she saw the crease of lines on her dear mother's forehead. Nadeshiko seemed to have gotten older in just the couple years that passed by after Ayumu's death—and it was obvious enough for Sakura to notice. Nadeshiko held Sakura's hand in her own grip as they stood there at the "reunion party" thrown by some of Nadeshiko and Ayumu's old friends, people that were from the same garage as Ayumu. _

_The woman Nadeshiko spoke to suddenly frowned as well, as if mirroring Sakura's thoughts. "Why, Nadeshiko-chan, you've seen to have gotten older day by day. I know it's been a while, but you seem so dragged and tired. You know, I can take care of Sakura-chan for a day or so if you want to go to the spa and relax or something. Ease yourself, you know? I'll take good care of her for you. Honestly, sweetie, you have bags under your eyes that are drooping like water balloons. I'm worried for you," the woman furrowed her eyebrows. _

_The woman avoided the subject of Ayumu—she knew he was the cause for Nadeshiko's pain and fast approaching elderly years. _

_Nadeshiko waved a hand and laughed it off weakly. "Ah, Namine, you don't expect me to be young forever, do you? I am thirty six now, it's only time until I turn forty. Sakura is no bad burden, she's very easy to take care of and I assure you she's not loading me with bags or anything. Isn't that right, Sakura-chan?" Nadeshiko smiled endearingly at her young pink haired daughter whom grinned toothily at her._

"_Of course, Okaa-chan!" Sakura inwardly frowned though and agreed every bit with the woman—Namine. _

_Namine simply sighed and nodded, "Whatever you say then…" she trailed off until Nadeshiko turned their conversation to a new end to ease the coming tension. _

_Sakura looked around the faces at the reunion party, and saw though, that there weren't any real happy faces anymore. _

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"_Oi, teme, it's me, Naruto! The great one! I'm at Neji's and—man, is it loaded here! We've got everyone here! Hah! We've got nearly everyone we're on good terms with and everyone that we hate here too! Neji told me the rest just totally fled their asses out of this town! But we've got good import models too, so I'm perfectly fine here!" _Sasuke twitched, he could practically see the blonde making a sly face at a passing by import model.

"Dobe…don't make yourself at home. You'd most likely need to leave that place in less than a week. How are the cops?" he questioned the blonde flatly, not wanting to stay on the phone to just discuss the "weather" with him. He'd save that for the pinkette he was currently living with—even if he was quite determined not to make any contact with her more than necessary.

"_Sheesh, you party pooper! Haven't you ever heard of 'live in the moment'!? I'm sure you 'lived in the moment' last night with the chick!" _really; Sasuke wasn't above speeding over there and castrating the irritating blonde on the spot and throw his castrated body out in the middle of the city for the cops to find.

He gritted his teeth, "How are the cops?" he repeated himself as he tried to fight the urge of killing Naruto—but not bury the urge completely, of course.

He heard Naruto laugh good naturedly on the other line. _"Hah! Trying to avoid the topic, eh teme?! I'll get the details out of you sooner or later—she was probably real good! Haha, well the cops are still on the loose. Neji's 'Secret Service' suggested we lay low for a couple weeks, uhhh about three or four weeks and we can go outside, but still on the run of course. Heh, so you have like a month or more to enjoy your chick's company! Lucky bastard! I bet all you two are gonna do is stay in that room day and night; talk about sexual tension!" _

Two veins were visible on his forehead now and his hand was twitching suspiciously. He looked over to see Sakura peering at him amusingly from her perch on the stool at the island. "…I'm hanging up, you're an idiot." he muttered, his teeth nearly grinding against each other—Naruto's words suddenly popped into his brain, combined with the thought of his "_grinding_" teeth—created an image consisting of pink hair, green eyes, legs, hips, sweat, and _grinding_. He twitched and inwardly slapped himself—he was turning into the blonde idiot, how much more could he degrade himself?

"_Hahaha! Fine then you ass! Oh! Don't forget to remind the pretty chick that when she needs me, I'm _totally_ here!" _on that note, Sasuke promptly tapped the end call button and threw his phone precisely onto the couch and proceeded to ignore it.

He looked up when he heard her laugh and saw her bite into an apple as she swung her legs back and forth from the high stool. Her legs. His eyes drew to them and watched her swing her left one and then her right one. He outlined the shape of her slender, muscled legs and her sleek calves that signaled much workout; they seemed perfect to wrap around his waist while he—_another_ inward slap to himself.

He made a note never ever to speak to the blonde for more than five seconds. It wasn't becoming for him to think like this.

_Talk about sexual tension! _

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He found himself looking forward to the next couple of awkward (sexually tense) months.

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**Aw, thanks so much for the lovely reviews you guys! **

**You gave me the energy much needed to finish this chapter once and for all! Roughly fourteen pages and more than 6000 words.**

**That's how much you motivated me! **

**I sat here—from about 12:59 A.M. exactly to now, 2:30 A.M.—writing continuously for one and a half hours. And I'm sorry for any grammatical errors! I'm just so sleepy to read over this! **

**Did I mention thank you? :)**

**Thank you! **

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**_EDIT_-- Yup, this current chapter was edited just once after the official publication because as stupid and sleepy as I was, I got Sakura's age mixed up. She is twenty one, not twenty three, thanks to some reviewers for reprimanding me! Also very sorry for the late one month update, I was held up in Hawaii. **

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**Alright so time for a brief info chat on the cars, just to clear up any confusions. Naruto's _Bugatti Veyron_ and Sasuke's _SSC Ultimate Aero_ do exist. The Bugatti Veyron is the most expensive car in the world-- about $1,700,000 and it's the second fastest car in the world, goes from 0 MPH to 60 MPH in 2.5-2.6 seconds. It's aluminum, Narrow Angle W16 engine with 1001 HP (horsepower) and goes up to 253 MPH. While the SSC Ultimate Aero is the fastest street legal car in the world-- it's the sixth most expensive car-- goes up to 257 MPH and 0 to 60 in 2.7 seconds. It's got a Twin-Turbo V8 engine 1183 HP and sells for $654,400. There's only twenty five of the SSC Ultimate Aero produced. **

**Yes, there probably will be more exotic car names coming up because it is a fast!&furious! type of fic, and cars come along with the ideas. And no, I am in no way car smart as that may sound. I just practically Google half my knowledge and turn to my brothers for the other half. I gotta admit though-- this stuff is pretty interesting to know about though. I try to do my research because no way in heck am I going to make up some random cars because I would never figure it out how to describe them-- engines, horsepowers, speed, looks, etc... so it was just easier to use some cars that do exist and you can google freely for the images though I doubt you'd find an orange Bugatti or a black SSC Ultimate Aero-- well maybe you will.**

**And Sasuke doesn't have the most expensive car because his character is intelligent and not money-egoistic. He was smart and chose speed over money. While Naruto-- pompous as he is and ignorant he is, invested in the most expensive car, with what money? You'll find out. :) **

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**Reviews make me write. (: **

_Lots of love,_

_XOXO Kaze-chan _


	3. Sad Tango

Summary: //SasuSaku// AU She should have known better than to extend her help to him. Now, she has to deal with the many temptations clawing at her with the undeniably sexy street racer in her home. "Are you seducing me?!" "…Are you seduced?" "N-No!" "Then no, I'm not." Slight crack.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, just the plot.

Rating: T (Some content not suitable for children)

Warning: OOC!Sasuke!

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"_What are you doing with that bottle of whiskey?" _

She looked at him _cautiously_.

"_About to drink it…"_

He thought it couldn't be more obvious.

"_I was so sure I made it clear that I hate_ drinking_." _

She glared at him,  
her feet going ((tap, tap))

"…"

He watched the strap of her tank top slide down.

"_I honestly prefer if you don't rape me when you're drunk." _

She caught his eyes—and  
pulled the strap back up

"…_All the more reason to drink."_

He smirked at her.

"…_Sasuke…if you come near me…"_

She let him to imagine the rest but it was fruitless, really

He downed the bottle of whiskey in one try.

"…_Sakura…" _

She gulped as he approached her.

"_S-Sasuke…stay away!"_

He cornered her and smirked against her neck.

"_Now I have a reason to…have my way with you…"_

His voice was getting so husky—

And oh Kami, those lips of his were really—

"_Are you gonna remember this in the morning…?" _

He stopped his…  
"_**ministrations**_"

"…_Yes."_

It was her turn to smirk widely.

"_Well then…let me show you just how much I despise whiskey…"_

She breathed heavily on his neck.

"_Hn."_

His one word reply came out raspy—

"_I'll make sure the only word you're going to be saying soon won't be 'hn'…" _

_Dear_ _Kami_—  
he now **worshipped** whiskey.

* * *

**Behind the Bars**

**3 . . . **

_**S ad **_**T ango**

* * *

_Everywhere I look for high and low  
couldn't find you and it shows  
That you don't want me  
to come to you  
Come to you again. _

* * *

"The red light district of Fire County—_Oto—_is like empty as hell now, isn't it, Neji?" Naruto asked lazily as he leaned deeper into the couch, smirking at the fast falling asleep import model in his arms. She yawned quietly before turning around to plant a long kiss on him—in which he bit her tongue playfully—before she got up from his arms and waved goodnight. Naruto winked at her and waved goodnight back before she blew a kiss and walked away.

The long dark haired man rolled his light silver eyes at the disgusting display of _prostitution_—what, that import model was Naruto's…_fifth_ today? He took off his black coat and hung it on the couch before walking around and sat down. He met the blonde's cerulean blue gaze and let out a sigh, "Aa. It would seem so. Apparently from what my people gathered, one of the racers that fled the city, he is not in attendance here, has close connections to the man that nearly commands Oto—a yakuza class-man, I believe. The racer informed him of our current predicament and he ordered all the inhabitants of Oto to leave immediately, or else he would turn them all in since nearly all of them have done something illegal.

"It would appear that the racer was afraid that one of the inhabitants of Oto would tell the Black Ops his name and so he had the yakuza affiliate to make sure none of them would be there when the Black Ops came to investigate Oto," Neji finished as he picked up the cup of water and drank from it steadily.

Oto—most popular red light district of Fire County had nearly every famous criminal living within it. Every drug dealer, racer, and yakuza men handpicked Oto as the perfect place for residence. It was also the infamous headquarters of one of the sectors of the yakuza. Oto housed a popular bar that held an underground brothel—_Ryuujin_.

It was a hot spot for every criminal. Racers traded drugs for adjustments of their rides. Import models that were condemned from their own parental homes found refuge within Ryuujin. Yakuza just found everything there—from rides, to weapons, drugs, and bedmates. Usually, the police avoided entering the district unless it was completely necessary. It was dangerous for the police—they were smart enough to know that they weren't welcome at all in the district.

Naruto raised an eyebrow and narrowed his eyes, raising attention to his whisker marks. Neji continued drinking his tea quietly before Naruto sighed and stood up, stretching. "That's a bunch of _bullshit_. Never thought _that_ district would be scared of _anything_," he growled out before heading to the stairs, "Yeah well, I'll call Sasuke-teme tomorrow to let him in on the details. I'm going to sleep right now though, _ugh_, all this runaway business is making me tired!" he said as a goodbye before chasing up the stairs, taking two steps at a time.

Neji stared at his retreating back before placing the empty tea cup onto the coffee table.

-

X

-

-

He couldn't help but to roll his eyes as soon as he stepped out of the bedroom, watching his pinkette "house-lord" run around panicking. He crossed his arms as he leaned against the wall of the hallway. The clock read 8:15 A.M. and he supposed she was awake this early because of her job. A smirk crossed his face when he remembered overhearing her conversation with her C.E.O over the phone yesterday. Sakura took a deep breath before turning around to face him, gulping one last time before sending him a glare.

"Look…_you_! I'm going to be gone until lunchtime which would be around two in the afternoon for me. Whatever you do, _please_, do _not_ wreck my apartment," she clasped her hands in a pleading manner with him, sighing deeply before continuing, "You have _no_ idea how expensive the _rent_ for this place _is_ so just do me a favor and try not to…_I don't know. _Just don't do something like buy some remote control _toy_ car and have it wreak havoc in my home!" she let out a deep breath as she finished her speech.

Sasuke stared at her for a long time in which she looked around her currently still intact home nervously. "I am not a kid. I don't play with toys." he stated finally in a careless manner, voice as uncaring and monotonous as always, not exactly reassuring her any more. Sakura looked at him with wide, jade green eyes, with tears threatening to spill. He twitched a little before holding up a hand, "I am not going to kill your apartment." he said with a hidden tone of promise.

Sakura let out a relieved breath before sending him one last shaky smile, "O-Okay then…I guess I'll go now. Um, so I'll be back at two, we'll eat lunch at some nearby place and I'll leave for work again around two fifty, three-ish. From there, I'll be working 'till night, about nine or ten, and if it's a _must_, I might come home later than twelve. But with what happened last time I went home _late_, I don't think I'll be stupid enough to do the same thing twice." Sakura twitched—not wanting to think of having a _second_ racer end up in her home.

Sasuke let out an amused smirk before waving his hand at her, waltzing over to the entrance of the luxury apartment, "Do you want a goodbye kiss with that, _mom_?" he said sarcastically, mock showing clearly in his eyes—humorously, the _only_ other emotion besides _stone_ that was ever shown in his eyes.

Sakura slapped him upside the head before slipping her feet into a pair of black three inch stilettos, matching her outfit of a pair of high-waist black pinstripe pants, an ivory sleeveless v-neck top, and a matching pinstripe blazer. Her wavy hair was left down as usual, barely touching her shoulders.

She raised her right wrist to look at the time on the large silver Gucci man's watch—8:27 A.M. She groaned before looking up at Sasuke quickly, "No I don't want a goodbye kiss. What I _do_ want is the keys to your car! Don't expect me to walk back home again!" she smirked at him, knowing he was going to be forced to give her the keys.

Sasuke stood there, frozen in place at the thought of his car in others possession. Sakura twitched as the time passed—a minute already. Sasuke continued on in silence before giving her a blank gaze, "I will not give you the keys. You can _walk_ to work. I will simply pick you up later when you're done."

Sakura gaped at him before a vein popped on her forehead; she grabbed her black Chanel purse from the floor and gave him a good glare before opening the door with rather a lot of force. "You know what? I'm almost due, so I'm not going to waste time by arguing with an incurable ass much like yourself. Don't forget to make lunch, _honey_," she bit out before stepping foot outside.

Sasuke gave her an equally freezing look as he held the door, "Of course, _mother_," he scoffed as he watched her scowl at him before stomping off to the elevator.

"_Crap!" _

He chuckled quietly under his breath when he caught sight of her tripping from stomping in her four inch booties. Without another look, he closed the door swiftly and went back into the apartment, walking over to the couch and lied down lazily before flipping on the TV. He twitched when the channel was showing anime—_shoujo_ anime no less. He looked in disgust as a couple was childishly confessing to each other.

"Tch. _Girls_." he muttered under his breath before flipping the channel, letting out a huff in satisfaction when he saw racing cars. _Legal_ NASA racing cars. It looked stupid—and too ruled, too _controlled_ compared to the ever free way of street racing. He let out a groan—he missed being in the presence of his Aero.

His thoughts of his beloved car stopped midway when his cellphone rang, he picked it up from the coffee table and answered it effortlessly. "What," he greeted unenthusiastically as he waited for some stupid voice to drawl in on the other line.

"_Yo! I see you're ever still the brooding ass! Hah! Still craving for sex, eh? You haven't had enough, have you teme?! Haha, well no time to joke. I'm actually calling you to talk. A serious talk." _Sasuke waited for the blonde on the other line to start cracking up at the stupid innuendo he made, _"…Pft! Hahaha! And no—I'm not going to give you the bees and the birdies talk, _hah_! But I'll tell you about it another time—you'll love _my_ version!"_

The dark haired man paled at the thought of Naruto's _sex talk_ resembling something that just came out of a _porno_. "You dobe. Get on with it." he murmured darkly into the phone as he gritted his teeth menacingly, wanting so much for one of the racers in the Hyuuga's mansion to just grab _something_ and _stab_ the blonde with it.

"_Jeez! Obviously the chick hasn't been paying much attention to you and your _needs_. If it's not sexual tension—it's obviously sexual _frustration_!" _when Sasuke was sure Naruto heard him seething on the line, he let the blonde continue, "_Okay, okay, don't get your panties in a bunch. And I do mean panties—!"_

"**Naruto**," Sasuke grounded out one last time in warning to the blonde idiot.

"_Right, uh…oh, okay, I remember! So Neji gave me the deets on Oto—that red light district, you know that place. He said that some racer is friends with the yakuza boss bastard of the district and the chicken ass racer was scared one of the district's people would rat on him so he had the yakuza bastard threaten all the inhabitants to flee. We don't know the names of either of them though. But we're pretty sure that the Black Ops are at the district, so whatever you do, don't go near that place, it's reeking with cops." _

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the mention of the Black Ops, "Aa." he replied smoothly, his mind already processing all of the information.

He heard the blonde laugh on the other line again, _"So…seriously, I'm bored so you wanna entertain me with some descriptions on your late night romps?" _

"Fuck you." Sasuke cursed through the phone as he clicked off the slowly turning annoying TV.

"_I'm sure you'd prefer fucking the chick over fucking me any day!" _a loud roaring laughter erupted in his the dark head's ear and Sasuke held the phone away before clicking the end button, effectively blocking any sound of the blonde's for now. He ran a hand through his hair before letting out a sigh, looking at the clock in the kitchen once again.

9:01 A.M.

-

X

-

-

_She'd _never_ expected it;  
seeing her precious father_

_look so  
_broken& _pale _

_(("Otou-chan!"))_

_his _hand_ was _cold

_(("We did all we could…"))_

_his _pulse_ was _unmoving

_(("_All you could, my ass_!"))_

_he _wasn't breathing

_(("I'm sorry, ma'am!"))_

_his eyes _weren't open

_(("You didn't even _try_!")) _

_he _wasn't there_ for her anymore, _

_((BEEEEEEP!))_

_her precious father;_

_(("…_**AYUMU**_!"))_

_was _**gone**_. _

-To her_—_

_life like _this

_was like some…_

……

_((_**twisted **_version of _Cinderella_.)) _

-

X

-

-

Sakura grumbled incoherently under her breath as she unlocked the door to the apartment. "Stupid scarecrow...thinking that I'd stoop so low as to cheat on someone. My love life is fine, thank you very much!" she growled before punching the door open, ignoring the loud noise that resonated throughout the hallway of the complex.

"I hope you're not thinking of destroying the only refuge I have for now," her eyes drew to the onyx orbs that were slowly starting to drive her up the wall. She gritted her teeth before pointing a finger at him and then at the door. He arched his eyebrow before letting a lazy smirk draw onto his face, "What?"

Sakura groaned before throwing her hands in the air, "Let's go get lunch! You can go outside, right?" she gave him a blank look, obviously too tired to deal with his witty remarks.

Sasuke just smirked at her frustration before walking to his temporary room to change. Sakura blinked as she watched him step back out a minute later in a pair of distressed jeans tucked in black combat boots and a black polo. "You have clothes?" she asked him as he ran a hand through his hair before approaching her towards the door.

"Aa."

She twitched before crossing her arms, "When did you get them?" she asked, he arrived before her and just sighed.

"When you were gone." He replied simply and she gave up, knowing that he wasn't going to give her more answers unless she pried it out of him. He was an enigma—and she knew that she wasn't good at dealing with enigmas and yet she still let one into her home, and another as her boyfriend.

As they stepped out into the hallway, Sakura looked at him once before running back inside the apartment quickly and returned with a pair of sunglasses and a cap in her hands. Sasuke just gave her a dull stare which she returned before shoving the hat atop his head and nearly poking his eyes out with the sunglasses in her attempt to wear it on him.

"What are you doing, woman," he sneered in annoyance as he fixed the cap and adjusted the sunglasses.

Sakura just gave a small blush as she turned around to lock the door before replying with her back turned to him. "Well—if cops are after you, we can't allow to be so careless! I mean, I don't care if you get caught and thrown in jail, but what I do care is that if you get caught, then that means I'm most likely going to be caught for housing a wanted person!" she grounded out the words before turning back, brushing past him to get to the elevator.

Sasuke just rolled his eyes before stepping inside the elevator with her, giving an amused glance at the pinkette. "Didn't I tell you? They don't have a good look at my face. Besides—they'd probably think I look too well bred to be a racer," he smirked haughtily before closing his eyes, arms crossed in an arrogant posture.

Sakura gaped before laughing quietly to herself, "Right. _Well bred_. Speaking of well bred—shouldn't you be with your family instead of trying to find hideout at a stranger's place?" she nonchalantly asked before fixing her hair tiredly.

Sasuke sighed and opened one eye behind the sunglasses to look at her, "My family is a well known lineage of cops. We have our own detective agency and police force—it would be stupid if I go back to my house, it's like turning myself in," he finished before following her outside the elevator. When he spotted sunlight, he presumed they would be walking.

Sakura stared at him for a moment until shaking her head with a loud hopeless sigh, the two paraded down the sidewalk, ignoring the stares people gave them. "If your family is a lineage of law enforcement related stuff, why the hell did you opt to become the black sheep?" she questioned him as she took out her phone in case her dear, perverted ass of a boss couldn't manage by himself.

Sasuke was quiet and Sakura felt as if she had said something wrong. She stopped walking, prompting him to stop as well before giving an apologetic look. "...I'm sorry if I asked something personal," she apologized as her gaze casted down to the pavement.

When a hand pushed her to continue walking, she looked up in surprise as their footsteps started once again. Sasuke wasn't looking at her as he spoke.

"I wasn't good enough to be anything else."

It was almost an inaudible murmur, but she caught it and her eyes widened as she looked at him through hooded eyes. She chose to keep her mouth shut as the rest of the walk was silent.

-

X

-

-

Sakura placed her fork on the table as she took out her vibrating phone from her bag. She let out a quiet sigh as her companion looked at her in curiosity from the opposite seat. She looked over the text message once before letting a vein successfully pop its way onto her forehead before tapping the reply button on her phone rather harshly.

_Sakura, don't take too long on your lunch date—I'd have to report it to Gaara! _

She could just imagine her childish boss giggling his way through texting the message. She tapped on the keys furiously as she gritted her teeth, tasting the aftertaste of her chicken. Sasuke just looked on in amusement as her expression changed from anger to an evil smile before shaking his head at the house-lord and just continued eating as if he didn't just witness insanity first hand.

_Kakashi-san. I will post a list of all the women in the company you've slept with if you keep blackmailing me like this. Fire with fire, you know? _

Most employees wouldn't dare to say such a thing to their boss, but her relationship with her dear boss was completely _**abnormal**_. Besides, she'd practically declared that their relationship wasn't normal when people caught her texting her boss words of threat countless times before.

When she nearly threw her phone back inside her bag, Sasuke made a motive to cough as she looked at him with a clearly frustrated expression on her face. "Please don't tell me I have to do the Heimlich Maneuver on you," she groaned when he continued coughing. Her eyes widened when he seemed as if he was really choking.

Nearly at once, she pushed her chair back and ran to his side of the table, clutching his arm and shaking rapidly. "H-Hey! Don't tell me you're really choking!" she pleaded as she moved behind him, preparing to wrap her arms around his middle when his own arms suddenly grabbed hers and his coughing stopped.

She blinked before staring at him from behind. When he finally let out a deep chuckle, she felt a blush creep onto her cheeks before she exploded in anger. "You! You! You..._liar_!" she jabbed at his back before huffing all the way back to her seat, receiving strange looks from the nearby people.

Sasuke just sent her an all to charming smirk, his perfect teeth glinting from behind his lips before letting out another chuckle. Sakura pursed her lips before twitching, grabbing a small tomato fruit and threw it at him. When he caught it expertly in his hand and proceeded to eat it, she let another embarrassed blush find its way up her cheeks before finally lowering her head to just eat the rest of the lunch in silence.

Whatever she did would only backfire on her part, anyway.

"Is everything alright?" a waitress stopped by to look at the two when she heard loud noises coming from their table.

Sasuke just kept a poker face on while behind the mask, his smirk was still plastered on smoothly. Sakura looked up from her meal when her companion didn't reply. "We're doing _fine_, thank you," she smiled sweetly and the waitress just smiled shakily before walking off faster than normal.

The meal continued on just wonderfully for the dark haired man while the pinkette could only brood over her gullible self.

-

X

-

-

_Curious onyx orbs looked on when he saw his father pat his older brother on the back with a proud smile on his face. "Good job Itachi! Another promotion! It's only time before you'll be placed as captain of your squad!" Fugaku's voice was filled with mirth and pride as the object of his attention just bowed his head in thanks._

_Mikoto beamed from her husband's side before hugging her eldest son slowly, "Congratulations, Itachi-chan!" she smiled and Itachi lifted his lips in an almost invisible smile before his tired eyes gave him away. Mikoto noticed it at once and just continued smiling before pushing him to his room gently, "Now, the Sergeant really should get some rest as a reward!" _

_Itachi thanked his mother before walking down the hallway, pausing when he saw his little brother's head peak out of his room. He stopped in front of the little head before bending down, a hand reaching out to ruffle the nearly identical hair. When he received no response from the small boy except for a pout, he just sighed before continuing on to his room._

_Sasuke watched his brother's retreating back, hopeful eyes welling up with tears as he tore up the award that he had received that day and stomped back to his bed. _

_His achievements could never compare._

-

X

-

-

Sakura smiled as she held the phone with her head and shoulder as she typed up the paper quickly. "Eh? Temari-chan got _another_ boyfriend? What a player," she laughed as she finished the report, clicking the print button after checking over for any errors. The sleek, masculine voice on the other line chuckled.

"_Aa. Sakura, I'll pick you up after work tonight. We can eat dinner at your house," _almost immediately, Sakura's jade green eyes snapped open and her eyebrows shot up before she frantically looked for an excuse.

"Um, actually, Gaara-kun—!" she was cut off when she heard talking on the other line and let out a sigh.

"_I have to go, I'll see you tonight," _was the last thing she heard before she frowned, bringing a hand to her hair in distress as she contemplated what to do. She rubbed her temple in stress before standing up, picking up the pile of papers she just typed up from the printer and walked to her boss' room with a heavy mind.

As she knocked on the door quietly, her mind raced with thoughts as a booming "Come in!" was heard. She opened the door and walked inside before sighing again as she faced her hopeless C.E.O...whom was reading his _book (porno)_. She didn't care to say anything for she was too tired to deal with His Royal Helplessness. "Boss, I typed up the reports and copied the papers for you. And Sarutobi Corps.' Vice-President requested a phone call with you for eleven o'clock tomorrow morning, I've marked it in your agenda."

The ever so attentive C.E.O (at least, towards women) lifted his head when he didn't hear a remark made by his lovely PA. "Oh?" Sakura remained unmoving before nodding stiffly, her eyes still clouded with other thoughts. Kakashi smiled through his mask, "Ah...boyfriend troubles, Sakura? Has your new roommate finally slipped out?"

Sakura twitched before slamming the papers on his desk, turning her back to walk out before turning back to leave a last retort. "You know—I'll post a list of all the women in the company you've slept with, and also flood your agenda for Saturday so that you don't have room to go on your weekly date!" she smiled triumphantly before happily escaping the office.

Kakashi sighed as he closed his book and spinned his chair around to look out the large window.

"So this is why Jiraiya-san said not to hire a PA..."

-

X

-

-

_((Drip, drop))_

_He placed a finger to his cheeks and let his eyes widen. _

_He was crying,  
for the first time in five years._

_But there was no one to comfort him._

_Not anymore, at least._

-

X

-

-

Sakura fumbled as she grabbed her phone from her bag and hastily dialed the number of her apartment before waiting for the dial tone to kick in. When she heard the normal beeping sounds, her heart slowed down a little as she stood outside of her company building. She gulped when there was no voice and the answering machine was heard. "No, no, no!" she groaned as she threw her phone back in the bag. "I knew I should have asked for his phone number!" she sniffed in misery before standing at the block, awaiting her doom.

Her eyes promptly closed when a bright light shone in front of her before she hesitantly peaked one eye open to see Sasuke's noticeable Aero parked at the curb in front of her. The window lowered and she could see Sasuke's arrogant face look out. She bit her bottom lip as she looked around for any sign of her boyfriend before looking at Sasuke again.

"Sasuke! Actually, I meant to tell you that you didn't have to come anymore," she gave him an apologetic look that he didn't return dryly.

He just looked at her before getting out of the car, turning off the engine and walked around to where she stood on the pavement. He gave her an annoyed look before grabbing her hand and gently pushed her to the passenger seat. "Just get in, woman. I'm already here and if I go, who's going to take you home? Planning on _walking_ again?" he sneered at her as he opened the door.

Sakura stuttered as she tried not to get into the car. "Actually..." she muttered quietly, he just raised a stubborn eyebrow at her until another pair of lights lit on them and Sakura's frantic jade eyes looked up to see her doom and she felt her heart relax tremendously when she realized it was just a passing car.

Sasuke gave her a dull look before ushering her into the car, successful as he closed the door and promptly dashed to the driver's seat. Sakura bit her lip in guilt as her cell phone rang. She blinked as she took out her phone and tapped the answer button, "Hello, Sakura speaking," she answered with her eyes still searching for her boyfriend.

Sasuke looked at her before starting the engine and Sakura looked over at him in fright before stopping his hand before they reached for the clutch. He gave her a look of annoyance, "What now, woman?!" she squeezed her eyes shut and begged him to be silent. He just huffed as he crossed his arms impatiently, wanting every bit to throw her out but she was his last resort.

"_Sakura, are you with a man?" _the tone on the other line was snappish now, annoyed and much resembling the voice of the man next to her in the car.

Sakura sweat dropped before pursing her lips, "Yea, my friend came to visit me," she lied smoothly. It wasn't a lie-lie, more like a half-lie because she admitted that she was with a man. Sasuke gave her an amused expression from his side of the car which she brushed off with an angry glare. He just smirked as he leaned back against the seat.

"_...Aa. I called to say I can't make it tonight. Temari and Kankuro planned a...family night behind my back," _even though he didn't say sorry, she could only smile weakly because she knew his tone was one of apology.

Sasuke watched how her eyes flickered a dull shade before returning to normal, "Oh, really? That's cute, well it's alright, I'll just ask my friend if he could drive me home," she bit her bottom lip and looked out the window nonchalantly.

"_Be safe. Call me if you need something." _

Sakura smiled full heartedly now as she replied, "Okay, goodnight Gaara-kun, have a nice time with Temari-san and Kankuro-san," she said bye before putting her phone away. She let out a relieved sigh as she turned to Sasuke with a bright smile.

"Let's go home!" she cheered and he just shook his head hopelessly before finally grabbing the clutch.

A smirk found its way up his face though when he knew just the right punishment to give her for her estranged behavior. His foot cautiously stepped on the gas pedal slowly and then he pressed on it with all the power he had, leaving her to just gawk at the meter when it flew from 5 MPH to 60 MPH and going higher each second.

Sasuke just smirked from his side. Revenge was sweet when you picked the right one.

-

X

-

-

_(I can never walk away like this;  
giving up on _**you**_.)_

_Finding ways to get  
_**you**_ back._

_What's the reason,  
_**you**_ turn your back to me?_

_How am I supposed to live? _

_I can't live without your _**love**_. _

-

X

-

-

His sleek silver orbs ran over the cars that were arriving at his mansion.

A dangerous glint shone in his eyes as he motioned to Naruto on his left, "Naruto...that car," he mentioned as he tilted his head to a black Lamborghini Murcielago LP640. Naruto narrowed his cerulean blue eyes as he nodded for Neji to continue. Neji clenched his teeth before memories flew through his head.

"_The yakuza classman from Oto—the one that helped that coward of a racer, we didn't find out his name, but we did gather what his car is from some of the racers you're housing here. He drives a _**black Lamborghini Murcielago LP640**_. It has a _**yellow phoenix**_ designed on the _**left side**_ of the car, and the _**right side**_ hosts the _**music note**_ trademark of Oto District." _

Skilled silver eyes analyzed the car he suspected and they hardened into stone when he noticed the yellow phoenix on the left...and the silver music note on the right.

"That car belongs to the yakuza man I mentioned to you earlier."

Naruto widened his eyes as he gaped at the car before groaning.

_Shit. _

-

X

-

-

She sighed as she wrapped her satin robe around her again, the ivory satin felt cool on her skin against the hot summer heat. She looked out the window of her bedroom as she sipped her tea quietly. Her wavy pink hair was still wet and ruffled from her shower, she ran a hand through the wet locks before turning around and walking out of her bedroom. She sighed as her footsteps carried her out of the short hallway until her eyes landed on her roommate sitting on the couch, lounging lazily as his eyes were closed in peace.

She smiled slightly before letting her voice carry over to him as she walked to the kitchen. "If you're going to sleep, go sleep in the bedroom. I don't expect to take care of a sick street racer," she said with a careless tone as she poured more hot tea into her mug. She winced when the tea accidentally spilled onto her foot.

Sasuke stood up from his seat as he heard her cry from the kitchen, dressed in a pair of drawstring pants and a black tee. He walked to the kitchen and looked on amusingly as he saw her jump around, one leg brought up for her hand to clutch the foot as she winced. "Ow! Ow! Hot, hot!" she cried before she caught sight of him and a small blush crept onto her cheeks. "Do you find a sick amusement at watching others' pain?!" she managed to yell out as she rubbed her foot where it was burnt.

His eyes trailed down to her foot and images suddenly flew into his head when his eyes leisurely trailed upwards the long, toned leg from the long slit her robe provided him. Onyx eyes darkened as they trailed upwards until resting on a noticeably small waist that was made more easy to spot with the sash tied around it before dark onyx made its way up to a nice amount of cleavage shown from her bouncing.

All of a sudden, she stopped bouncing when she felt someone's eyes on her and her eyes madly flew to his before noticing they were an abnormal shade. She gaped as she dropped her leg on the floor and watched how he was slowly advancing towards her. She stood her ground and gulped when she saw the way he was approaching her—predator and prey.

"Hey you! Are you a pervert too?! Kami-sama, I've had enough of all these hormonally driven men!" she said the last part under her breath as she stoned her eyes, glaring at him until a blush flew up her cheeks when she saw the intensity in his eyes.

_Oh my Kami-sama...am I going to get raped by someone that owes me big time? _

He kept coming towards her until he was a mere hair away from her, his breathing hard and panting as she froze in spot, daring him to move any further. She gulped when his hands raised until they were clutching her shoulders. He bent down until his head was beside hers, and his mouth was near her ear. "S...Sasuke! You better step away this second or I'm throwing you out!" she threatened with an unsteady tone.

"Don't wear robes anymore..."

She blinked as she stared at him incredulously. His breathing was still harsh as he closed his eyes. _Did he just say what I think he said? _

Suddenly, a small giggle escaped from her lips before booming laughter shook her form. Uchiha Sasuke knew that today, hell had frozen over when he felt something warm spread across his face as he leaned back and away from her shaking form. Sakura's eyes were filled with mirth as she looked at the hormonally unstable man in front of her.

When her laughter died down a little, she successfully escaped from his hold as she walked over to the fridge, opened the freezer before throwing an ice pop in his direction. He widened his eyes at the incoming object and caught it in the nick of time. His eyes flew to her jade ones as she sent him a knowing smile.

"Really, Sasuke, I understand you're still male. I'm flattered to know that I turn you on," she laughed again before brushing past him out of the kitchen.

He twitched before brooding at his stupid hormones and stepped out of the kitchen as well.

Sakura just smiled humorously as she quickly dashed to her bedroom, closing the door before he could see the crimson shade that was currently resting on her face.

Sasuke sighed as he stepped to the bathroom.

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Kami, he needed a cold, _cold_ shower.

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**Thanks again for all the reviews! It really encouraged me! :)**

**Sixteen pages for you all! **

**I apologize for any grammatical errors. My computer's recently been de-virused by being reformatted so everything was gone, I had to reinstall Microsoft Word, and somehow I didn't get the grammar check program in it. Again, my apologies.  
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**So there was a review that gave me really good constructive criticism about the way I structured the cars. It's a bit far back, and I forgot the name of the reviewer (sorry!) but you know who you are! **

**So the reviewer told me about how street racers don't just show off pimp expensive cars, but they show off pimp cars that really display their artistic talent and unique individuality trademarks and such. **

**I'll be sure to add that in the story in the next chapter or so! **

**Thank you for your review... (**_**yea**_**, I actually went through to find the name!) **_**MizuiroNeko**_**! **

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**So this chapter's featured car—the yakuza guy's car. **

**The Lamborghini Murcielago LP640 is the ninth fastest car in the world. You may have seen it in The Dark Knight, serving as Batman's car. Its top speed is 211 MPH, goes from 0 MPH to 60 MPH in 3.3 seconds and has a V12 Engine with 640 horsepower. The base price is about $430,000. It doesn't make it to the Top 10 Most Expensive list though, but its fellow Lamborghini Reventon does as number **_**two**_**. **

**You can Google it as 'Batman's Lamborghini' or something like that. **

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**Reviews make me write. (: **

_Lots of love,_

_XOXO Kaze-chan _


	4. Illegal

Summary: //SasuSaku// AU She should have known better than to extend her help to him. Now, she has to deal with the many temptations clawing at her with the undeniably sexy street racer in her home. "Are you seducing me?!" "…Are you seduced?" "N-No!" "Then no, I'm not." Slight crack.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, just the plot.

Rating: T (Some content not suitable for children)

Warning: OOC!Sasuke!

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"_Don't _touch_ me!" _

He had never seen such a color in her eyes.

"_Sakura."_

**Red**—hidden in deep burrows of jade.

"_I said don't touch me! _**Don't**_ come near me!" _

He stared at her;  
eyes unbelieving

"…_What's wrong,"_

She didn't soften her expression,  
and neither did _he_.

"_You said—you _promised_!" _

He sighed in frustration  
a careful hand running through his hair

"_What are you going on about now."_

She let the exasperated expression take over.

"_You promised."_

He _**still**_ didn't get it—  
She was still hard to figure out.

"…"

She fell back down on the couch;  
a hand on her forehead.

"_You could've _died_!"_

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**Behind the Bars**

**4 . . . **

**I ll e g al**

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_You got me,  
I can't get enough  
I'm addicted to you  
Baby your love  
should be illegal. _

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Her eyebrows furrowed as she tried to block the loud ringing from the cell phone with her pillow. A groan escaped her pale pink lips before she sat up abruptly, an angry expression on her face as she looked at the time—_3:09_ in the morning! _Just what the hell are those bastards thinking?! _She noticed that it wasn't her cell phone, and there was just her and...jade eyes narrowed from sleepy hooded gazes to a petrifying glare. "..._Sasuke_." she snarled as she jumped off the bed and made her way to the unfortunate victim.

A week with the emotionless ice pack and already he was driving her nuts. She couldn't possibly imagine living with him longer than this. She slammed open the door to his bedroom and her eyes froze when she didn't see him lying there in his bed like he should be at this _crazy_ time. She nearly stumbled over to his cell phone as she looked at the caller ID, eyes still drowsy but with alertness now.

**Uzumaki Naruto **

It was the blonde. What could he be calling Sasuke for at this time? The phone's been ringing nonstop, it was as if it was an—

_Emergency_.

Nearly lightning fast, her hand sprung out to catch the phone before it stopped ringing and hastily slid the answer button. Her voice was shaky, and still full of sleep and grogginess, but she managed to say one word without stuttering too much. "H...Hello?" she muttered quietly, a hand rubbing at her eyes while looking at the empty space on the bed.

"_Oi! You're the chick housing Sasuke-teme right?! Tell him not to come to the mansion! He's in deep shit if he comes!" _the blonde's voice was anxious, as if panicking and was trying hard not to yell into the phone.

She furrowed her eyebrows in the darkness and clung onto the phone tighter. "What are you talking about?" she asked breathlessly as her eyes jumped around the room and she could only hear her heart skip a beat when she saw his keys still lying on the bedside table. Yet he was nowhere in the apartment—and the spare key she'd given him was gone, but surely he couldn't have gone walking and left the keys to his prized car in the apartment.

"_There's no time to tell you from start to finish! Just tell him not to come _ever_! Crap! Look uh, what's your name again?" _his voice was hasty now, and she knew that the phone call was about to end soon.

"It's Sakura—what the hell are you talking about?!" she nearly shouted but kept her voice down since she lived in an apartment complex, luxury or not, she still had close neighbors. If word spread around that there was a racer in the building, things wouldn't look good for her or Sasuke.

"_Sakura-chan, I can't tell you everything right now! Maybe one day if we ever see each other but, for now, just make sure Sasuke-teme doesn't bring his ass to Hyuuga Neji's mansion! I gotta go now!" _he nearly stage whispered the last part before abruptly hanging up, and her eyes was wide with fear as she remembered the anxiety in the blonde's voice. The blonde didn't look like the _anxiety_ type, so it must be bad when he was anxious.

"Hey—!" she was cut off with the dial tone and she placed the cell phone down on the desk slowly before letting her eyes wander around once more. She let out a small groan before grabbing the cell phone, the keys, and running to her bedroom to throw on a white leather motorcycle jacket on top of her gray tank top and red draw-string flannel pants while grabbing her own cell phone. She ran out of her room and dashed down the hallway to the entrance to slip on a pair of sandals before grabbing the door open and closing it as she stepped outside, not caring how messy her wavy hair was.

She locked the door hastily before running to the elevator, the doors slid open with a chime, no residents using the elevator this late (or early) besides her. As she pressed the button to the underground parking level, she nervously wondered where the dark featured man could have gone. She started thinking of places—places someone that broods as much as _he_ would go.

As the doors finally slid open, it didn't take her long to see the flashy car. She'd have to remember to buy something to cover the car up. She unlocked the doors and threw open the doors, letting the door slide open above her before getting in, closing the door and throwing all her stuff on the passenger seat beside her.

She nearly stabbed the key into the lock and turned the key, the engine roared to life before she grabbed the clutch and stepped on the gas, slowly backing out of the parking space before driving towards the exit. She groaned as she slid open the window and fed her room card to the machine before it spit the card back out, she grabbed it as the bar was barely moving upwards, and as soon as she was sure the bar wouldn't hit the car, she nearly dug her foot into the gas and surprisingly, _expertly_ turned out of the underground parking area and out onto the empty road.

The clock went up a minute—3:23 and she mumbled incoherently under her breath as she desperately looked around for her dark haired house-mate. She raised a hand to her hair in stress as she looked out the window at the bridge over the beach. Her jade eyes widened when she caught sight of two figures—one figure looking like the man she was looking for while the other figure was looming and nearly _dark_ looking, even darker than her house-mate.

She cussed before stopping at the curb, pulling out the keys furiously before getting out of the car impatiently. The door slid closed behind her as she marched hastily towards the two figures, not even thinking of the danger that could be waiting.

All of a sudden, her pace slowed as she finally registered what she was doing. The two figures turned after hearing her footsteps and she nearly stopped breathing when a pair of identical onyx eyes turned to face her. It was quiet at the scene, and for a second, no one spoke until she daringly took another step forward and let out a loud breath.

A relieved look appeared on her face before she opened her mouth to speak, the two pairs of eyes still staring intently at her, one pair burning with hidden contempt. "S-_Sasuke_! Are...are you safe?" she managed to muster out before her hand grasped the keys of his car once again. Just in case, she bent her knees and prepared to run back to the car if the two shadows weren't him.

When a sigh was heard and a deep, slowly becoming familiar voice replied, she let out a sigh of relief. "Stupid. I'm right here. Do I look safe to you?" just because she was out of it and couldn't register his sarcasm, her jade eyes took in the sight and saw how he was positioned in a casual conversational way with the other man.

"...You look safe enough."

When a dark chuckle erupted from between them, and it was neither from her nor him, her gaze turned to the other man present. She furrowed her eyebrows as she looked at the second man. "Who are _you_?" Sasuke rolled his eyes in the dark at the seemingly overtly asleep pinkette before walking over to her.

"None of your business. What are you doing out here?" he sneered as he grabbed her arm, attempting to drag her back to the car. Sakura growled as she twisted her arm away from him, eyes narrowing under the light of the streetlights, as she trudged closer towards him, intent on accomplishing what she first came to do.

"Fine—I _don't care_ if you tell me who he is or not but first, you need to get back to the apartment, Sasuke. It's late and completely unhealthy for anyone to be awake at this hour. Besides...your phone's been ringing again and again the past hour," she threw him his phone which he caught swiftly before giving her a disapproving look. She could have _killed_ his phone with the clumsy half-asleep toss she just did. She gave him an irritated expression before grabbing his arm. "Let's go! You can finish this discussion later, when there's _natural_ lighting out," she murmured before shooting a vicious look at the stranger, leading Sasuke back to the car.

Sasuke made a move to pull back, but the drawling voice of the stranger froze the both of them. "I didn't know she was the man, little brother, I expected more of you," a soft chuckle erupted once more, "For you to actually let a dominatrix into your life, I learn something surprising every day."

Before Sasuke could twitch, the stranger spoke once again, breaking the forbidden silence as Sakura continuously tensed. "Goodnight then, foolish little brother. We will continue our discussion when there is natural lighting out," the man shot a smirk at Sakura before turning, walking to the car parked at the curb.

Sakura's well trained eyes inherited from her father took in the sleek crimson, dark red almost blood-like colored Saleen S7 Twin-Turbo under the streetlight. The left side of the car had a white and red colored fan that she vaguely remembered seeing on Sasuke's Aero as well while the right side sported an intricately detailed black print of a _weasel_. She raised an eyebrow at it—_Interesting design choice..._ she brushed the thought off before turning her attention back to focus on Sasuke.

Her mouth closed as soon as it had opened when she saw the blank look on his face. It was..._blanker_ than usual. If that even made any possible sense. When her eyes trailed down his arm to the light emitting from his cell phone, she could notice that he was texting. Mostly texting the blonde. Curiosity racked her brain as she wondered just what was it about the event happening that made the blonde so anxious—and him _so_...distracted.

She shook it off once more before pushing him in failure towards the car, letting an annoyed wail, she walked to the car alone, tired out by all the pulling and pushing she'd been doing on the man that weighed a ton more than she did. "Move _yourself_!" she shouted before pressing a button the keys, the doors of the Aero reflexively sliding open. She got into the passenger seat and gave the slowly walking man a sigh.

_Geez. So _slow_._

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"Can you not be so reckless?"

His voice was blunt and monotonous as usual, but somehow, she could sense the anger deep inside him. As the door to the apartment opened, she brushed past him before walking over to the sofa, landing softly on it, her wavy hair flying up before falling down as she met the cushions. She closed her eyes and crossed her arms before gritting her teeth, "Not be so reckless?! I was just...!" she closed her mouth before letting the word slip out.

From his spot behind the sofa, standing above her, Sasuke raised an eyebrow before letting a sigh out. He ran a hand through his hair before smirking tiredly at her, "I don't need you to be worried about me. I can take care of myself," he said simply as he walked towards the kitchen, grabbing a cup before going to the water dispenser.

Sakura opened her eyes and leaned back in her seat before looking at Sasuke with a stern gaze, "I didn't say I was worried about you! Don't assume things! In fact, if your friend hadn't repeatedly called, I wouldn't have even made the _effort_ to go out looking for your ungrateful ass!" she let out a growl before standing up, turning around and prepared to walk to her room.

As she was about to move, his hand shot out and grabbed her arm. She stood still and didn't turn to him until she heard him sigh, his breath on her neck. A slight blush made its way up her cheeks and she could feel the heat radiate off his body. She turned her head slightly so that she could see him from the corner of eyes. "_What_?" she snapped.

He opened his mouth and hesitated a bit before dropping the hand he laid on her arm. "I..." she looked at him expectantly, he waited a couple more moments before sighing in frustration, "_Thank you_...for going out to look for me. I just never asked you to do these things for me. All I asked was for shelter, and as long as you provide me that, you don't have to go further and do other things for me." His voice wasn't as cold as usual, and she parted her lips in surprise when she noted a hint of...actual _remorse_ in his tone.

She quickly returned to her stubborn streak and continued marching to her room, "You have your shelter. Just..." she tossed him a small glance before turning her head away, "do whatever you want, just not anything stupid." The last part was more of a mumble and before he could say anything else, the door to her room had already closed softly behind her.

Sasuke stared after her before turning to the cell phone he held in his hand. The phone vibrated, receiving a text from Naruto.

_Oh Teme, your manners aren't really top-notch (not that mine are either HAHA) but remember to thank Sakura-chan! _

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Naruto looked on uneasily from his spot on the window sill towards the scene outside at the main entrance, where Neji was greeting the yakuza man. Naruto clenched his fists and gritted his teeth before grabbing the water bottle and stood up. He let out a sigh before throwing on a white t-shirt to accompany his orange summer sweats. The chain holding his crystal pendant around his neck moved with him for a moment before returning to rest on his chest.

He ruffled his unruly blonde bed head before casting a look back at the window. In a flash, he disappeared out the door. He stopped in surprise though when his cerulean blue eyes that were looking downwards saw a pair of small feet with freshly manicured bright yellow nails. His eyes trailed up until he met the figure of Yamanaka Ino, dressed in dark washed denim shorts and a cropped cut yellow t-shirt on top of a black undershirt. She narrowed her sapphire eyes at him before crossing her arms.

"You...you're Sasuke's friend aren't you? Uzumaki Naruto, the '_Kyuubi Racer_.' Stay here, I wouldn't go outside if I were you. Danzo's outside and if he knows you're related to Sasuke in any way," she paused for a moment before closing her eyes, "he'd probably torture you until you gave up information about him. Rumors are is that Danzo is still hung over his loss against Sasuke." Ino reached her arms upwards to tighten the hair tie bounding her long, waist length blonde hair in a ponytail.

As she was about to turn and head back to her room, Naruto's voice drew out, stopping her movement. "I'm not scared of him, che. And I'll die before I give up anything about Sasuke. You don't need to worry about me," he grinned at Ino before marching towards the stairs.

Ino raised an eyebrow from her spot before smirking slightly, "Tch, I was merely transferring a message to you from Neji. The point is, stay inside, idiot. Don't cause us unnecessary trouble," she finished off before holding up a hand waving goodbye, she disappeared down the hall and Naruto turned in time to see her close the door to her room.

He hesitated for a moment before looking at the maids and Neji entering the mansion, the yakuza man revealed to be Danzo in tow. He let out a quiet sigh and a glare towards Danzo's direction before turning, returning to his own room. _Damn it..._

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What** about,**

_My_

_..._

_**Star**__? _

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"_Oi, Nadeshiko..._

**You're the engine to my car.**

_Without you, I'm useless." _

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Sasuke twitched in annoyance when he could practically feel her burning gaze on her back, following his every movement. It was freaking him out and it was a shame he couldn't voice it out loud because that would ruin his _image_, of course. As he placed the cup inside the dishwasher, he stood up straight and tall before freezing all at once. He could hear her let out a small sound of surprise at his sudden stop. He didn't turn around though, and it took his all not to feel self-conscious under gaze.

She was _annoying_ him to no end.

"Hey...stop that. It's annoying."

Sakura blinked as she sat backwards on the couch, looking at him in wonder. "What is? My looking at you? You should feel proud. I'm known for being picky with men," she chuckled before turning around to sit properly on the couch until she lifted her legs up into a lying position, sprawled on the couch. "I'm having a really boring day off. You're not much of a conversationalist either..." she turned off the TV, closing her eyes and let out a sigh.

Sasuke turned to look at her when he was sure her eyes were off of him. He blinked when he saw her dosing off. She murmured something that he couldn't catch and he was about to walk towards her when the apartment's phone rang loudly. Sakura's jade orbs opened under her eyelids once again and she stared at the phone in annoyance. A tired arm lifted and she directed Sasuke to the phone. "Answer it for me."

... Silence engulfed the two until Sakura furrowed her eyebrows, looking at him irritatedly, "What? Hurry up before it stops ringing!"

"You could just get it yourself, woman, it's right next to—!"

"You're in _my_ land! So pick it up when I ask you to!"

"Why you...!"

"Hurry up, idiot!"

His hand practically tore the phone up from its holder, digging his finger into the talk button, his voice a dangerously low tone as he kept his glare on the pinkette settled comfortably in her position on the couch.

"_**Hello.**_" He smirked when he caught her disapproving look, she hated disrespect, especially towards _guests_ and so his current tone towards the caller was absolutely not approved.

He dropped his gaze from her when a smooth male voice answered him on the other line.

"_...Sakura?"_

Sasuke's eyes turned blank as he blocked the speaker on the phone, muting the other line from his voice. "It's for you, most likely your beloved boyfriend," he mumbled sarcastically when she shot up from the couch, glaring at him before leaning over to grab the phone from him. He stood still there, looking at her as she spoke on the phone, having not understood what invasion of privacy meant.

"Gaara-kun?" Sakura talked into the phone enthusiastically, happy to hear her dear boyfriend's voice after its void for nearly a week now.

Gaara's voice on the other end was dark and especially not happy, _"Was that a man who picked up, Sakura?" _

Sakura widened her eyes and looked at Sasuke frantically, trying to think of an excuse. "Um, yup! The same one that came to visit me the other day! We're just having lunch at my place, trying to catch up, you know? It's been a while since I've seen him! I hope you don't mind, Gaara-kun?" she smiled in triumph when her lie sounded nearly perfect. Sasuke just shook his head at her, still not believing how people managed to buy most of her terribly told lies.

"_Of course...I don't mind. I wanted to say that I'm coming over soon, Kakashi told me it was your day off," _Sakura froze, knowing that underneath his words lied the phrase 'Why didn't you tell me you had the day off?' She inwardly breathed deeply before letting out a muffled reply.

"Ah...sure, Gaara-kun. I'll just clean up a little and you can be here in another... thirty minutes? Or an hour if you're at the company," Sakura twirled a random lock of hair as she looked at the clock. "I'll clean up the apartment, and see you later, Gaara-kun," she hung up the phone before standing up, narrowed eyes looking at Sasuke.

"Hey...what are we going to do?" she sighed as she ran a hand through her hair.

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As soon as she stepped back into the living room, she knew something was wrong. Her jade eyes found Sasuke's figure standing stiffly at the kitchen, unmoving while his head was bent...staring down at his cell phone. She blinked before biting her bottom lip, cautiously moving towards him. "Hey...Uchiha..." she murmured once hesitantly before moving further towards him. When she got no reply, her eyebrows furrowed and she narrowed her eyes conspicuously. "Uchiha?"

One of her hands that were surrounded by dangling silver and black shiny bangles and bracelets reached up to fist the hem of her bright citrine v-neck top with foil graphics printed on it, the other hand nervously patted against the side of her thigh covered in a pair of dark washed skinny jeans, the bottom sides of the pant legs had zippers leading up a couple centimeters above of her ankles, she had unzipped the zippers on the sides to show some of her ankle's skin.

She kept walking until she finally reached his position, at the island, his phone set on the counter while his eyes were focused on whatever it was that was on the screen. She felt scared; he looked like he was in a death-like stance, his face for the first time, showed an emotion, and it was _very_ clear.

**Hate.**

She breathed in quietly before finding the courage to tap him on the shoulder, "H-Hey...Uchiha, what's wrong? You look like you're constipated..." she tried to clear the intense atmosphere to no avail. As he still kept quiet, a nerve popped at her forehead as she began to become annoyed. "Hey can't you speak?!"

When he turned around to look at her, she felt her blood stop running and goosebumps form at the intensity of his darkened eyes. His breathing was harsh and even an idiot would be able to tell that he was angry. "Uchiha! Talk!" she barked out worriedly, a hand hesitantly reaching up to his arm.

One second passed, two seconds, then three seconds before he finally parted his lips. His cold, onyx eyes met her intimidated jade ones. "I have to go. Where are the car keys?" his voice left no room for her to cut in between, and his words were final. With just one glance, she knew that she would have no say in the matter—whatever it was, anyway. When she noticed he was become irritated with her lack of reply, she opened her mouth abruptly before searching for things to say.

"I...uh, the keys, hold up," she stuttered slightly in the suddenness of the situation. She jogged lightly over to the coffee table, where she had last placed the keys and picked up the key ring quickly before jingling it for him to see from his spot. "Here!" when he began to walk towards her, she threw him the key and he caught it expertly before practically power walking into his room. The door swished softly behind him despite the obvious force he'd used to close it.

She felt sweat drip down her forehead slightly due to the tangy summer heat and she grabbed an abandoned hair tie nearby and twisted her hair into a low bun, quickly roping the hair tie around the bun securely before grabbing her cell phone from the coffee table and practically running towards the door, where she knew he would run to after he exited his room. She nearly tripped on her own feet as she scurried to throw on a pair of black heels. They weren't practical for running, but she wasn't even sure if she had any non-heel shoes. Her business involved job required for her to look formal half the time.

When he reentered the living room seconds later, he was dressed in more public suited clothes. He had on a black v-neck, a pair of dark washed jeans as well, and per usual, he slipped on his black combat boots that were, for some strange reason, still shiny as ever despite probably being worn out. She inwardly breathed in a large breath when she conjured the fact that he made such a simple outfit look splendid with his 6'4'' physique and lean muscularity. He grabbed the keys from her hand as he passed her and she furrowed her eyebrows.

"Where do you think you're going?" she snapped, eyes narrowed and full rosy lips set in a firm line.

He met her eyes and immediately he knew what she wanted to do, "You're staying here. You're involved too much as it is." He set off for the doorknob but her arm blocked him from the door. He glared at her and raised his voice evenly, "Don't waste my time." He bit out and she almost dropped her arm in shock before confidence surged through her and her ambitious self showed itself once more.

"No! Look—even if you're just a _random_ street racer in my home, it won't look good if I let you get yourself killed out there! I'm coming with you, to _whatever_ it is you're so bunched up about!" when she finished her speech, she promptly pried open the door herself and shoved him out after her.

Determined jade eyes looked up into his onyx ones, "Hurry. It's urgent, isn't it?"

Without another word, the two ran down the hallway.

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**Say it.**

_I'm yours._

_**You're mine.**_

Say it.

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One hour later.

Tousled red hair, emerald green eyes flashing, he stood outside the door of her apartment. He fixed his tie a bit, undoing it slightly to let himself take in a breath before sighing. His hand, the one that wasn't holding the black suitcase reached up to ring the doorbell of the apartment. One ring and there was no response or noise inside the apartment.

His matching scarlet eyebrows furrowed in anxiousness before his hand reached into his pocket for his phone. Speed dial, she was number three, two after his siblings.

Dial tone, more dial tone, still dial tone.

Finally—he heaved a sigh in relief when he heard the crackling sound of the receiving end.

"_Gaara-kun! Something came up, sorry!"_

And without another word, it went silent, she had hung up.

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He hesitated, but he turned—and walked down the hallway, away from the apartment.

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**My long writer's block has definitely downgraded my writing. **

**I'm sincerely sorry for the long wait but, finally I have a month off from **_**college **_**(the epitome of my MIA)! **

**This wasn't as long as I was hoping it would turn out to be, but each scene was written months apart from one another. Sort of written in random moments here and there before being cut off because I was interrupted. The last probably two scenes was written today and the rest, the beginning of this chapter was probably written months ago.**

**I barely picked it up, **_**today**_**! **

**This one was twelve pages, especially disappointing, but I hope you guys don't mind! :")**

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**A four month long hiatus, and this is the long awaited comeback. I wrote a one-shot two days ago (**_Never, Always_**), to revamp myself before restarting my continuous stories. You have no idea how many PMs I received, thank you for all the encouragements! **

**There's possibly many grammar issues in this one since this is the first draft, I'm hurrying to update this, so I'll definitely come back to edit sometime tomorrow. **

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**Today's featured car—Uchiha Itachi's car! **

**The Saleen S7 Twin-Turbo is the third fastest street legal car in the world. It runs at 248 MPH, and goes from 0 MPH to 60 MPH in 3.2 seconds. It's got a Twin-Turbo All Aluminum V8 Engine and 750 horsepower. The base price is $555,000 and is number **_**seven**_** on the Top 10 Most Expensive list. And of course, the weasel design gives its signature to Itachi's name. The fan design refers to the Uchiha Clan's emblem and also makes a reference that Sasuke's own Aero has the same design. Trademarks their family. **

**You can Google it by its name, and the images have reddish orange models but Itachi's is more crimson, a darker 'blood' red. **

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**Reviews make me write. (: **

_Lots of love,_

_XOXO Kaze-chan_


	5. Tokyo Drift

Summary: /SasuSaku/ AU She should have known better than to extend her help to him. Now, she has to deal with the many temptations clawing at her with the undeniably sexy street racer in her home. "Are you seducing me?" "…Are you seduced?" "N-No!" "Then no, I'm not." Slight crack.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, just the plot. I also don't own the songs at the beginning of each chapter. They belong to their respective artists.

Rating: T (Some content not suitable for children)

Warning: OOC!Sasuke!

* * *

"_I love you." _

She chuckled quietly to herself.

"_..."_

His eyes burned into hers.

"_What?" _

His voice was annoyed.  
Why did she laugh at _**his**_ confession?

"_Nothing."_

He didn't buy that.

"_Just tell me, woman." _

She looked at him carefully before smiling,  
she walked over to him slowly.

"_Well..."_

He followed her every step with his eyes,  
deeply concentrating on her movement.

"_..."_

She placed her chin on his shoulder,  
letting her breath warm his neck.

"_I never thought I'd hear you say those words." _

He smirked.

"_You say it so much; I thought it was time to give it a try too."_

_

* * *

_

**Behind the Bars**

**5 . . . **

_**To k yo **_**Drift**

**

* * *

**

_Should see me in the parking lot;  
7-11 is the spot.  
Mice with wings and shiny things,  
Lions, tigers, bears,  
Oh my ride!  
We're furious and fast. _

_

* * *

_

She breathed heavily as she watched outside, looking at the right rear view window on her side of the Ultimate Aero. The trees, pavements, and buildings flashed by before her eyes in a blink as he skillfully handled the car racing at 160 MPH. She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping the vomit inducing ride would be over soon. The summer weather wasn't helping with her anxiety either. With him driving this fast, who knows what the heat can do to the engine?

"S-Slow down!" she managed to stutter out as she peeked her left eye open to look over at him, making sure not to stare at the zooming scenery flashing outside the window. He spared her a glance and a slight, pitiful sigh before keeping the speed. She gulped before uncomfortably shifting in her seat. This was her fault—she had volunteered to come along, and now she felt like an idiot for not being able to settle with the speed. _I'm such an idiot, with my whining, I'll only drag him down—and this is an __**emergency**__. _

She berated herself before looking up determinedly from her lap, yanking her eyes open forcibly. She looked over at the handsome man, waiting for him to toss her another glance. When she met his eyes, she gave him a small, yet firm nod.

"Go."

Without further ado, he accelerated the car, and all the while, she kept her ears open to hear the swift sound of tires smoothly gliding against cement.

The car made a sharp turn, leading to a steep hill on the street. She held her breath for a moment before the car dropped down the hill, butterflies turning over in her stomach, she felt like she was on a roller coaster. _Who would've thought I'd be here doing this with my least favorite person? _She chuckled inwardly to herself, until they met another right turn, leading to a dead end. Her eyes widened as she looked at Sasuke alarmingly.

"It's blocked! Where are you—?" she couldn't finish her sentence as a mysterious voice rang in the car. _Who is this? _She looked around for someone, but could find no one, and situated herself calmly, listening to the unknown person speak over some invisible intercom to Sasuke. Sasuke looked calm and collected, as if there was nothing unusual with a random voice dropping out of who knows where.

"_Uchiha?"_

The voice was arrogant and deep, the tone much reminding her of her own housemate sitting right beside her.

She could only shiver in fright at how alike the air of pride and ego the two voices gave off as Sasuke answered the voice. "Hyuuga. Open the underground gates. It's me." She watched his expression to see if he showed any familiar emotions at hearing the mysterious voice. Exactly as she predicted though, his face was blank—like always. He turned to look at her, forcing her to immediately turn her own eyes away in embarrassment, caught staring.

"_...You shouldn't be here, Uchiha."_

Sasuke glared at thin air as he spoke in anger, Sakura could only widen her eyes in surprise at his tone of voice. "If I shouldn't be here, then why the hell should _everyone else_ be here?" he hissed out, his eyes turning an especially murderous shade of onyx. Sakura gulped, waiting for an answer to the seemingly deadpanning question.

Without another reply from the stranger though, the wall that blocked their way literally split in half, opening as if it was some..._automatic entrance_. As she looked to see what was further inside the entrance, she could see nothing but darkness and lights. It didn't take her much longer to figure out it was probably some tunnel that they would soon be zooming through.

Right as she was, he stepped on the gas pedal, and soon they were flying off into the tunnel, the walls swiftly sliding closed behind them, as if it was never open in the first place. She looked back just in time to see another wall slide open, letting him race through it. She had a tingling urge to scream as they sped down the tunnel, heading straight for another wall, when just in the nick of time, it slid open as well.

She turned to her left to glare at her driver, "What the hell is this place?" she asked in frustration, tired of being kept in the dark.

It took about four more sliding walls and an incredibly awkward silence where she stared at him before he finally replied.

"The Hyuugas' underground hideout lot."

Her eyes widened.

_This place is...! _

X

"_Come on, Hizashi! Why so serious?"_

"_Be quiet, you idiot!"_

"_Why, _you_!"_

X

The final wall slid open and she gaped as she finally saw it—the hundreds and hundreds of cars parked in the lot. The Hyuuga Underground Lot was notorious for its secretiveness (until it became so infamous) and intelligent architecture. The lot was loud, filled with people camping in their cars, practically living in the lot, music was playing loudly from one of the cars and there were import models and racers all around her. The thought annoyed her to no end but she kept it to herself, these people didn't look half as if they'd treat her nicely if they found out she _despised_ them.

"Sasuke, you shouldn't be here. Your friend, Naruto, warned me about this place. We should leave," Sakura furrowed her eyebrows as she turned to her right to catch a couple making out against a car. She cringed and turned back around to look forward.

Sasuke pursed his lips before turning to look at her. Noticing her uncomfortable position, he sighed, "Don't worry about it."

Despite the reassuring tone he tried to put on, she still didn't seem very convinced as she watched two men about to initiate a fight. _Oh yea, I'm in a place filled with race cars and men—totally nothing to worry about. _

Whistling and talking chanted all around her as the Ultimate Aero belonging to him drove down the lot slowly, before the people made way for it, letting him speed up towards the end where there were ten reserved spots. Sakura's memory kicked in as she saw the familiar orange Bugatti Veyron parked in one of the spaces. If she remembered correctly, it belonged to the blonde that conducted those annoying calls last night.

The car's vibrant hood was colored even more vibrantly with a decorative, bright yellow swirl. The left side of the car sported a black print of the shadow of a nine tailed fox with the tails sweeping all the way to the trunk while the right side had a black print of a..._cup of ramen _painted on it. _...Ramen? _She stared at the Bugatti in disbelief as Sasuke pulled his car up to the spot between the Bugatti and another car.

The other car was a creme white color, it was a Koenigsegg CCX. Both sides of the car had a black strip painted on the white canvas. The hood of the car was marked with a green X followed by two curved lines on either sides of the X. The left side of the car sported the yin and yang symbol, and the car was overall very simple and modest in design but the car itself was definitely nothing to scoff at. The car seemed fast and muscular, even with its pure color and peaceful designs.

Sakura's trained eyes took in the car before catching sight of a car parked on the far side of the ten reserved spots, away from the other three cars. It was a black Lamborghini Murcielago LP640, with a yellow phoenix on the left side of the car and a purple music note on the right side. Nearly immediately, she knew who the car belonged to. _For them to allow an Oto district car here, just what are they thinking? _

The doors to his car slid open and she flinched reflexively, wondering if she should stay in the car or not. When she met his gaze, she hesitantly threw her legs out the car, bending to step outside before walking over to Sasuke as quietly as possible in her heels. As soon as she stood up to her full height of 5'4'', she could hear murmurs start around her. Sasuke turned around to give her a solid gaze, holding the eye contact for an endlessly long time before grabbing her arm.

She stared at the hand on her arm for a moment before looking up, catching his eyes again. His gaze was steady per usual, no lies and no deceit, but no truths or honesty either.

She followed him without a second thought, him being the only person she could trust for now. She tried to look away as she met the gazes of the import car models and the street racers. Cat calls were heard and she avoided everyone as she stared at her feet, wholeheartedly dedicated to following Sasuke's footsteps for once.

"Sasuke-kun, your new girlfriend?"

"Still got game, Uchiha!"

"I volunteer to pick up the mess later!"

The two ignored the many calls they got as he led her through the swarm of noisy people. It took a couple of minutes before they reached the elevators. He pressed the up button and the two awkwardly waited for the elevator, still having their backs turned to the curious stares. She tried to find her voice as she cleared her throat. "You seem pretty popular."

She was expecting silence again when his reply was heard, making her wish he had went for the silence instead.

"I'm always popular."

The conceited reply irked her to no end, grouped with his plain and nonchalant expression.

She twitched before crossing her arms, pulling it away from his grip. "You conceited little...!" she started out, but didn't get to finish as the elevator arrived, the doors sliding open.

As the doors slid apart, she was met with a _building_. No—a body. A body belonging to a seemingly muscular man, the man was dressed in a white Ralph Lauren polo matched with a pair of dark washed jeans and white Diesel shoes. She turned her gaze upwards to inspect the man's face, he had silver eyes and seal brown hair that reached his mid-back and pulled back into a low, loose ponytail.

He was unconventionally _pretty_.

But who was even prettier was the woman standing dutifully behind him. She caught eyes with the woman, and the woman sent her a friendly smile, immediately Sakura felt comfortable.

The woman was a lovely sight for sore eyes, with slightly sun kissed skin that resulted from much exercise and dark chocolate brown mid-back length hair that was wavy and tousled in an attractive way. Her eyes were a matching chocolate brown eyes that radiated warmth and welcome. She was dressed in a forest green top with one of the sleeves slipping off her shoulders to reveal the gray tank top underneath and a pair of medium washed denim shorts, leading to the pair of dusky gray booties adorning her feet.

Sakura inwardly stared in awe at the woman, she seemed so much more eye catching than the import models that were _supposed_ to be sexy. This woman possessed a sexiness that wasn't just physical looks, she appeared confident and poised, walking with a straight posture, seemingly 5'6'', two inches taller than herself. She had a great physique, curvy and toned while maintaining a sophisticated air about her. The brunette was positively striking to glimpse at.

Sasuke greeted the man in the elevator stiffly, "Hyuuga," he acknowledged before turning to the woman, "Tenten." The woman gave a cheerful greeting back and a wave before turning to view Sakura again, a bright smile still outstretched on her coral colored lips. Sakura smiled back shyly; the first time where she felt timid towards another female.

The two stepped into the elevator where Sasuke introduced everyone, "This is Sakura. Sakura, Hyuuga Neji."

The man, Neji sent her a charming smile, "Pleased to meet you, Sakura-san. I've heard much about you from Naruto."

Sakura and Sasuke looked at each other knowingly, Sasuke's face showing annoyance while Sakura let out a small hint of a smile. Neji and Tenten had no idea what the two were going on about between each other.

Tenten grinned as she stepped out from behind Neji, "Yo, Sakura-chan! I'm Tenten, nice to meet you. Hope that blondie didn't crack too many perverted jokes in your presence," the brunette smiled, inwardly seeming as though she was reminiscing the blonde idiot's jokes.

Neji rolled his eyes as he smirked at Sasuke. Sakura let out a small laugh, "No, he hasn't," _Not in my _presence_, anyways. _

Tenten chuckled before nodding, "That's good to know. The blondie _does_ know respect," Sakura rolled her eyes and the two females sent each other secretive smirks.

Sasuke and Neji ignored the females' talk as they discussed quietly with each other. Neji reached his arm up to the left upper corner of the elevator, and Sakura curiously watched as he pressed a button, turning the security camera off. When he made sure the elevator was secure, he began to talk, Tenten closing her mouth shut at once to let him talk.

Neji narrowed his eyes at Sasuke, "Uchiha, you know it's not in your best interests to be bringing your hide here. I can't be responsible for any immature decisions you make," his voice was lethal now and Tenten turned her head away, as if trying to ignore the conversation. Sakura intently brought her gaze to the floor, ears still keen and listening though.

Sasuke didn't bother a reply for the silver eyed man, instead, he opted to pretend he hadn't heard one word that came out of the opposite man's mouth. Neji gave him an irritated expression before giving up, ending the conversation.

The elevator was in an awkward silence the rest of the way up.

X

They took a quiet route in the mansion, she was pretty sure it was a route only the Hyuuga family and its closest acquaintances would know about. The path was dimly lit, and there was not even a tiny sound. There were rooms on either sides of them in the narrow hallway, and Sakura could only guess that these were the servants' "chambers." The Hyuuga family was an ancient family, that much she knew. There could be ghosts littered everywhere in the mansion.

She followed in sync behind the two men, with Tenten flanked at her side. The walk was quiet as well, caused by the uneasy silence created earlier in the elevator. It came to her as a surprise when she heard voices though—a group of voices. They froze in their steps, sending each other alarmed looks, Neji gave Sasuke a signal and soon Sasuke had grabbed her hand and pushed her into a room. She gasped as she fell to the floor, Sasuke entering after her and closing the door behind him.

Sakura widened her eyes, staring at him as he placed a finger to his lips, quieting her. Outside, she could hear voices talking, the two familiar voices belonging to Tenten and Neji. She looked at Sasuke only to see him glaring murderously at the door, she followed his gaze to stare at the door as well. The two stayed quiet to listen to the conversation taking place outside.

"_Ah, Danzo-san, what are you doing here at our servants' area?"_

"_Haha, you know it's been a while since I've been here, Neji. I just thought I could take a little tour and refresh my memory!"_

"_Of course, well then, I won't distract you."_

"_No, no! Why don't you and Tenten-san join me?"_

There was a pause and Sakura worriedly listened in. Tenten's voice abruptly began and she felt relieved to hear the brunette.

"_Actually, Danzo-san, Neji and I have previous engagements to attend to. Do you mind?"_

"_Oh! Haha, I see. Well don't let me disrupt _you_!" _

There was a burst of laughter before the footsteps took off, and Sakura calmed down slightly. They waited a while more in the room, quiet as anything, before Sasuke finally stood up hesitantly to open the door. Sakura peeped her head out cautiously to see Neji and Tenten casually standing there, as if discussing something.

When Neji and Sasuke caught eyes, Sasuke grabbed Sakura's arm and led her out once again. Sakura looked at Tenten with fearful jade green eyes, scared of what was happening, and what exactly was going on right now.

Tenten smiled encouragingly at her, trying to lessen the stuffy atmosphere.

It didn't help much.

X

Sakura breathed in deeply as they entered another elevator. She had successfully memorized most of the route's way, and if ever she should be left alone, she'd know where to go to get back to the parking lot. She closed her eyes and leaned against the walls of the elevator, catching her breath and calming her racing heart. Sasuke gave her an amused smirk from beside her. She returned it with a slowly becoming natural glare. Tenten smiled at the two from the other side of the elevator with Neji.

"Naruto is on the next floor. We'll be arriving at his hallway soon," Neji paused in his speech, giving Sasuke a reprimanding stare, "I advise you to be cautious, Uchiha. Danzo is not to be taken lightly..." his voice drifted off, letting the other man get a quiet understanding of what he meant. Sasuke nodded silently before continuing out the elevator, his eyes positioned forward as he marched towards his goal single minded.

As they approached the hallway that belonged to Naruto, Neji and Tenten halted in their footsteps. "We should be going now, to distract Danzo. We'll be with him until you give us a call, just to make sure he won't wander off into these areas by himself. Tell us when you're done talking to Naruto, and we'll come get you. You can't stay here long, Sasuke," Tenten informed as Sasuke and Sakura turned to look at the two.

When Sasuke proved to be wordless, Sakura heaved a sigh. "I'll get him to leave early."

At the statement, Sasuke turned to give her a meaningful glare which she returned with a spiteful scowl. Tenten and Neji looked at each other before the brunette female laughed good naturedly, "We'll entrust it to your hands then, Sakura-chan. See you later," she raised a hand in farewell before she took off with Neji, the male not saying a word besides throwing a cautious glance back at them.

Sakura sighed as she looked up at Sasuke. They were standing in front of a sleek white door which, she guessed, belonged to Naruto. Instead of going in, Sasuke was simply staring at the door as if waiting for it to magically open. Sakura raised an eyebrow, "Are you having second thoughts about coming here?" she murmured wistfully.

Sasuke threw her a look that was edging towards offended. She inwardly burst in giggles at his revolted expression. "Just kidding. One such as yourself would never doubt their decisions, of course," she added quickly before he could explode on her.

He sighed before knocking on the door.

Sakura practically jumped a foot backwards when the door flew open, revealing the grinning face of the idiot blonde who she met a week or so ago. She inwardly chastised the blonde. _Of course he wouldn't bother asking who the heck it is before throwing open a door. _It wasn't surprising when the blonde's overjoyed expression hastily turned into one of anger.

He pointed accusingly at Sasuke, who in turn just stared at him uninterestedly, "Teme! What the hell do you think you're doing here? You're not supposed to be here!" before the blonde could yell anymore ignorant ramblings, the darker haired male had shoved him inside the room, Sakura trailing behind him silently.

The door closed behind the trio as Naruto glared at Sasuke, waiting for an explanation. Sakura stood between the two, ready to make a move if things got violent.

Sasuke glared right back at the blonde, his onyx orbs piercing into Naruto's cerulean blue ones. "What the hell do I think I'm doing here? You should know the answer to that, dobe," he snarled out unattractively. Naruto stood his ground however and continued their glaring contest as Sakura sighed, leaning back against the door.

Sasuke continued, not letting the blonde slip in a word. "You never told me _Danzo_ was here."

Naruto hesitated, faltering in his gaze before returning to look at Sasuke directly, "If I told you, you'd fly over here. But looks like someone else told you so there's no helping it now," he growled before turning his back to Sasuke to sit on his bed. Sakura watched the two closely as Sasuke approached the blonde.

"You have to leave, idiot. If you stay here, he'll find a fucking way to hurt you," Sasuke scowled as stood in front of his friend.

Naruto growled in frustration, bringing two hands to his head to grab his hair, "Why the hell does everyone keep saying that? I'm not weak, Teme! Even if he stuffs a knife up my balls, I won't tell him where your location is!" he stood up now, glaring at Sasuke once more before noticing Sakura's slightly shifting body in the background. His gaze softened before he offered a weak smile at the pinkette who gave him a dry look. Naruto twitched before scratching the back of his head sheepishly.

Sasuke sighed as he walked towards Sakura. He didn't have a retort to the blonde's statement, that was enough to say. Sasuke had known the blonde for more than ten years and despite his denial, he knew that Naruto was not weak.

Naruto breathed triumphantly before looking at Sakura. He grinned hopelessly at her, "Sakura-chan right? Sorry, this isn't how I wanted to meet you," he chuckled as he gave that embarrassed expression towards her.

Sakura's jade eyes softened at the blonde's charming gesture, she smiled warmly at him, "Let's not count this as our first meeting then," she slyly advised before looking at her housemate to see his reaction. Sasuke merely crossed his arms and let the two converse freely. Naruto grinned before nodding.

"Alright then! We'll meet again, when it's all bubbly and cheerful and crap!" he laughed a booming, heartwarming laughter and Sasuke couldn't help but scoff at how carefree it was.

Before the three could continue to talk, a knock on the door interrupted them. They tensed as they waited for the person to speak. "Uchiha-san? Neji-san told me to come get you. He says that Danzo will catch wind of your presence so it will be wise if you leave now," the voice belonged to a girl, a timid girl since it was quite soft spoken.

Sasuke nodded to Naruto and Sakura walked off the door so he could open it. Naruto slowly pried open the door before giving out a sharp cry, "Whoa!"

"Meep!"

Sasuke immediately stood on his toes, ready to jump as Sakura also took caution. "What is it, Naruto?" Sakura asked as she looked around the room for an object that could be used as a weapon.

Naruto laughed, "Settle down, guys! It's just a girl, a _cute_ girl!" he grinned suggestively as he opened the door wider so Sakura and Sasuke could see the intruder.

Sakura blinked as she looked at the girl, "Eh? She is cute," she mumbled to herself as she took in the girl's appearance. Sasuke merely rolled his eyes at the two.

The girl had straight, waist length dark indigo hair paired with blunt bangs and the typical pale Hyuuga eyes. She was dressed modestly in a mauve drawstring t-shirt dress that reached just above her knees but hugged her form just enough to hint at the lovely figure underneath. She seemed small and petite even if she stood at the same 5'4" height as Sakura. Her feet were adorned in a pair of matching white flats that had decorative bows on them. She blushed at the compliment, "Thank you," she bowed her head before looking up at Sasuke. "Uchiha-san, I'll lead you to the parking lot."

Sasuke sighed before nodding, "Aa, Sakura," he motioned to the pinkette who nodded at him, preparing to exit.

"Wait! I'll come with you—!" Naruto began.

"No," Sasuke interrupted him before he could finish the sentence. Naruto scowled and Sasuke narrowed his eyes, "You'll see her later," he indicated to the indigo haired girl who stood by the door innocently. Naruto pouted before crossing his arms. Sakura laughed quietly to herself before stepping out of the room.

Naruto grinned one last time, "Then, Sakura-chan, let's meet for the first time some other day!" he waved bye ecstatically to Sakura.

Sakura smiled before nodding, "We will!" she waved bye as well as Sasuke followed her out the door.

Naruto smiled happily as he watched their retreating backs before closing the door to his room.

X

_Life would be so _sweet_—_

_if it was __**worth living**__._

X

"Sorry, but are you a Hyuuga too?"

Sakura prompted the question after remembering that she shared the same pair of eyes as most of the Hyuuga family members had. The girl turned around to give her a smile, "Yes, I am. I'm Neji-san's cousin, Hyuuga Hinata. Pleased to meet you, Sakura-san," Hinata caught Sakura's returning smile before looking forward once more to continue leading them towards the parking lot.

They had not reached the end of the hallway before a door opened, causing the trio to stop in their footsteps to wait for the person to exit.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow as Sakura's eyes widened frantically when she saw who it was.

"Ino?"

The said blonde turned around as well to catch the pinkette's surprised gaze, giving her the same exactly look. "Sakura? What are you doing here?" Ino closed the door behind her as she stared at her friend in astonishment. Hinata and Sasuke looked on with concealed interest as the two girls voiced their surprise.

"I was just..." Sakura was rendered speechless as she tried to make up an excuse.

Ino looked at Sakura inquisitively before looking at Sasuke, "Uchiha Sasuke?" she looked back at Sakura. The blond haired woman's gaze shifted between the two before her eyes widened in sparkling assumption. As her mouth opened to form the words, Sakura's frightened gaze didn't stop the sentence that protruded from the blond's lips.

"Are you _returning_ to the import scene?"

Sakura gaped, looking upwards to meet Sasuke's shocked onyx eyes.

X

_(("Whoo!"))_

_Hesitant jade orbs looked inside the underground parking lot._

_Just what was that noise coming from inside?_

_Her eyes took in the fascinating sight—there were colorful and unique cars littered everywhere across the lot._

_Music was booming loudly from the cars and there were men and women everywhere._

_She felt her hands tingle with excitement as her mind registered just one thought._

_"I want to be in there."  
_

X

"I was fifteen."

Sakura sighed as she leaned against the back of the seat. Sasuke peered at her from the corner of his eyes as he continued to drive. For the first time since she'd met him, he was driving at a comfortably normal pace. She inwardly chuckled, somehow, right now, she really wished he was driving nonstop like crazy again.

"I had just gotten into an argument with my mom and escaped outside for some, I don't know, fresh air? I was walking around the streets and then I saw it," she smiled nostalgically, reminiscing the past, "The import scene at its highest. I'd never seen it before—but the first time I did, I knew exactly where I wanted to be—with those cars."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow curiously at her as he stopped at a red light. Sakura chuckled, "I wanted to be part of it. Maybe I couldn't make it as a racer," her tone took one of irony now, "Maybe I could make it as an import girl. I didn't care what I had to be as long as I was there, with that..." she struggled to find the correct word, "...with that _world_. I wanted to belong in their world. It seemed so carefree—no restrictions, no regulations. At the time, I was at a rebel phase in my life, I guess you could say. I loved adventure and lusted for thrill. That import scene in the parking lot was _everything_ I wanted."

He smirked as his eyes flashed in recognition.

"So I waited a couple months, turned sixteen, and immediately asked some kids in my school about it. They hooked me up with some delinquent racers from the school and I made friends with Ino, an import model, and that was where I got my great entrance into that other world. It was fun, I admit. Sneaking out at night, meeting up with friends, tuning the cars, watching the races. I kept it up for about two years until my mom caught me sneaking out one night," she closed her eyes.

"I was ready to run away and forget about home. I was ready to give everything up for the import scene."

He stepped on the gas when the light turned green, staring at the street while he kept his ears wide open for her story.

"But then she had to go and tell me the story about my dad. He used to be part of a team, but he got killed because of the whole crazy life you live once you join that world. It was a mass escape night—kind of like the one you saved me from. My dad had a car, and some bloke didn't. The bloke shot him and took the car and made a run for it," Sakura gazed blankly ahead at the street.

"I went back for two more nights after that, with my mom willingly letting me do it. Then, I quit after those two nights. Partially out of guilt because of my dad's past," she blinked, "And partially out of hatred for the accident that killed my friend. My friend was a racer, and he got challenged to a drift race. Being the stupid show off that he was, he accepted even though he'd never drifted before in his life," she opened her eyes and shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "He made a bad turn, and that was the end. I couldn't let go of it so I quit the whole thing entirely."

He was slowly picking up the speed now, "And now you hate every street racer that crosses your path," he concluded for her. It was silent for a while, and he could practically feel the skepticism in her breathing.

She smiled dryly before looking out of the window to hide her expression, "No," he turned to look at her, "Not every."

She turned to look at him, jade eyes clashing with onyx ones.

Silently in his head, there were warning bells ringing all over. _This is dangerous territory, Uchiha, do not enter. Do **not **enter. _

It was five seconds, but it felt like forever, before he broke the eye contact, looking back ahead to drive. Sakura awkwardly looked away as well, clearing her throat.

Opting to gaze at the passing scenery, she let the landscape capture her attention as her driver peered at her from the corner of his eye. While she was still distracted, Sasuke managed to slip out a small, secretive smirk.

X

_(("Let's see how good that mouth is on the street, punk!"))_

_(("Fine then, you wanna race?"))_

_(("Right here. You and me, kiddo. Drifting."))_

_(("Drifting?"))_

_(("You heard me. What, you _**scared**_?"))_

_(("Hell no! You're on!"))_

_(("Kyo, stop it!"))_

_(("I can take him, Sakura!"))_

_(("You don't know how to drift!"))_

_(("Well this is the perfect time to learn!"))_

_(("Kyo!"))_

X

Sakura forcefully tore her eyes away from the window, trying to forget about the memory. They stopped at another red light, and seeing as how Sasuke refused to look at her again, she pursed her lips and looked out at the window once more. Her eyes immediately widened. She blinked for a while before rubbing her eyes, trying to decide whether she was dreaming or not.

Shaking her head left and right, Sakura continued to stare out the window disbelievingly. Her breath was caught in her throat and she didn't know whether she should scream or drown in her own denial.

Sasuke turned to look at her, noticing her frantic antics. "Sakura?" he called out her name quietly.

When he received no response, he looked out the window to see just _what _she was staring at. He furrowed his eyebrows when he took in the sight. It was just another car. He squinted to look further, to see who was inside the car and raised an eyebrow musingly when he noticed it was a man.

The man had fiery red hair and emerald green eyes. Sasuke looked at Sakura again, albeit doubtingly, "Sakura, who is it?" he asked again as she refused to give him an answer.

When he looked again at the car beside them, he spotted another figure.

_A woman_.

Sakura felt her heart quake as she continued to stare.

X

The man with the emerald green eyes turned to the left—and caught eyes with Sakura's jade ones.

* * *

**Do tell me it hasn't been over half a year. **

**Just kidding, I already know myself that it has been over half a year. I'm incredibly sorry and I don't even know how many people I've disappointed. D:  
**

**Thank you to all who have waited patiently for me though, I appreciate it a lotlotlot! Especially thank you to people who PMed me to encourage me and question where my existence left to.  
**

**I know, this is quite the crappy chapter to give to you guys after a long, long, long, long (x1000000) time. It has been an awfully long time since I've updated and my writing isn't the same as it was. To add to the fact, my dislike of Sasuke is increasing slowly with every new chapter of Naruto...I always knew Itachi would turn out as the better brother. Oh, Sasuke, the wrongs you've done. **

**I seriously had the first half of this chapter written already like five months ago—but never finished it, until today, in two hours because some inspiration struck me. (Perhaps re-watching **_**Tokyo Drift**_**?) **

**Fifteen pages today to apologize. Sorry, and thank you! :)**

**Please to continue to support me! (:  
**

X

**Don't hesitate if there are any grammar mistakes—it is 2:02 in the morning so expect plenty of them! I will most likely be publishing some one shots in the near future. **

**(EDIT) I managed to clean up any grammatical errors that I caught. If I missed any, don't hesitate to tell me!  
**

**There's seriously **_**six **_**different one shots piling up in my folder. All uncompleted. With more than 1000 words each. I really must learn to finish what I started. Hehe. :") **

X

**Today's car—Hyuuga Neji's Koenigsegg CCX!**

**It's the fourth fastest street legal car in the world (according to the 2009-2010 list). Goes up to 245 MPH, from 0 MPH to 60 MPH in 3.2 seconds. It has a 90 Degree V8 Engine with 806 horsepower. It was also made in Sweden! The base price is $545, 568 and is also number eight on the Top 10 Most Expensive List (2009-2010)! The X design on the hood refers to Neji's curse mark on his forehead, of course while the yin and yang symbol represents the Hyuuga's trademark for their Byakugan and such. **

**You can Google it by "White Koenigsegg CCX," and there should be a picture of a white Koenigsegg CCX everywhere. Nice, right? (: **

X

**Reviews make me write. (: **

_Lots of love,_

_XOXO Kaze-chan _


	6. Up & Down

Summary: /SasuSaku/ AU She should have known better than to extend her help to him. Now, she has to deal with the many temptations clawing at her with the undeniably sexy street racer in her home. "Are you seducing me?" "…Are you seduced?" "N-No!" "Then no, I'm not." Slight crack.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, just the plot. I also don't own the songs at the beginning of each chapter. They belong to their respective artists.

Rating: T (Some content not suitable for children)

Warning: OOC!Sasuke!

* * *

"_I'm not obsessed!" _

She scowled as she took a hold of another raspberry.

"_Sakura put the damn raspberry down!"_

He made a dive for the small, bumpy red fruit.  
She swiftly dodged his attack and bit into it.

"_I've only eaten a couple!" _

She tried to hide the fact that her lips were a bright red.  
And _**not**_ from lipstick.

"_A couple my ass."_

He grabbed the box of raspberries.  
Her eyes widened and she grabbed at it.

"_You can't do this to me!" _

He raised an eyebrow.

"_I can. And I did." _

A smirk followed.  
And then he taped the lid of the box.

"_Sasuke! You can't do this!" _

He scowled before approaching her.  
She glared at him fiercely.

"_Put the raspberries aside." _

She looked at him inquisitively.

"_Why?" _

A sly look.

"_Because Sasuke-berries are better." _

_

* * *

_

**Behind the Bars**

**6 . . . **

**U****p **_**&**__** D o w n**_

_**

* * *

**_

_It seems like you'll give me  
the whole world with your smile.  
As the cold wind howls;  
on chilly days, it seems like  
I forget my own existence. _

_

* * *

_

_The man with the emerald green eyes turned to the left—and caught eyes with Sakura's jade ones. _

Sasuke glanced at the sleek champagne red colored 2010 Audi R8 GT beside his own Aero. As his eyes drifted from the car to the driver, and finally back to Sakura, he saw a slight shiver from the girl sitting next to him. He searched the profile of her face as she looked forward at the street, hands shaking and lips quivering. Despite her shaky disposition, her eyes were stone cold and the jade in her eyes weren't their usual lively shade. They had turned into a duller color, draining the blood from her face.

Slowly, he put two and two together and his eyes widened by a fraction as he looked at the man in the car beside them once again. The man was peering intently at them, emerald green eyes ice cold much like his own, and lips pressed in a firm, thin line. The woman beside him had turned to look at them as well and her mouth was opened in surprise.

"Sakura—!"

"Go," she cut him off quietly.

With his eyes becoming rocky as well, Sasuke sent the redhead a fierce glare before pressing on the gas as soon as the light turned green. Sakura closed her eyes and allowed him to speed down the street as fast as possible. She clenched her fists in her lap as she tried to forget about the car that held her boyfriend and his female friend. She tried to forget about her boyfriend and his female friend. She tried to forget his_ female friend. _

Sasuke peered at her from the corner of his eyes and he gritted his teeth silently before pressing the gas harder, racing up to 180 MPH. He looked in the rear view mirror to see the redhead's car far behind him now. With a cocky smirk, he continued his path towards her apartment, letting the redhead eat dust.

Suddenly, the roar of another engine made him take another glimpse at the mirror, his eyebrow raising elegantly as he saw the red Audi R8 speeding up towards him. Sakura opened her eyes, evidently hearing the wheels behind them as well. She turned her head to look at the back window and her eyes widened when she caught the sight of Gaara pursuing them from behind. "S-Sasuke! He's—!"

"Aa," Sasuke replied effortlessly before pressing the gas once more and Sakura had to clutch her seatbelt as the car practically flew along the road. The meter rose up to 200 MPH and she struggled to pry her eyes open. As she looked at Sasuke, she was astonished to see his eyes were wide open and he was navigating the car smoothly. They made a swerve to the left gently, as if floating on air. There was no possible way that Gaara could catch up to them now. She turned around to see him follow them, changing to same lane behind them.

She calculated the speeds of the two cars in her head, and Gaara simply wouldn't be able to even catch their trail if Sasuke went any faster. Gaara's Audi R8 would only go up to 199 MPH max, and Sasuke's Aero exceeded 200 MPH. And already, with a flicker of her eyes towards the back window, she could see the Audi struggle to keep up with the Aero.

When she looked forward again, her eyes widened as she saw the traffic light flicker to red—at the speed they were going, they were going to speed right past it, but at the same time, collide with a car from the other side of the intersection that would be making a left turn into their lane. "Sasuke!" she cried out anxiously as the scenery passed before she scrunched her eyes close, her hands gripping her seatbelt hard enough for her knuckles to turn a frosty white.

"_**SASUKE!**__"_

She shouted one last time before she was sure they were going to crash.

And then at the last minute, as the car on the other side of the intersection was turning left, Sasuke tossed a quick glance at the rear view mirror once more before gliding smoothly to the right lane. His skilled hands flew to the hand brake; pressing and dragging it up before his hand reached towards the control shift and changed the car to Park.

Sakura tried hard not to hit the front of the car as she dug her heels into the mat on the floor. Then in a flash, the car halted to an abrupt stop, the tires giving out a whining screech.

In the lane beside them, Gaara's Audi R8 came to a complete stop in the nick of time as well. Sakura looked over to her left to see the woman in Gaara's car frantically shouting something before Gaara unlocked the doors and stepped out. Sakura clenched her teeth before looking up in surprise when she heard the door to Sasuke's side of the car slide open as well.

"Sasuke, wait!" she tried to stop him, but to no avail, the dark haired man had already gotten out of the car. "Crap it, crap, crap, crap!" she muttered as she unbuckled her seatbelt, violently shoving her door up. She drew one leg over the other before lifting herself out of the car, approaching the two men.

Her jade eyes flickered to Gaara's car and narrowed to see the woman inside staring at them intently. She had a short light brown bobbed haircut and side swept bangs, from what Sakura could see. Her eyes were a pitch black shade and Sakura's own eyes enlarged as she realized who the person was. _Matsuri! _As quick as her eyes had flashed widely, they narrowed once again as she marched towards Gaara and Sasuke.

Gaara was dressed in his usual business attire—looking the same as she'd always seen him, dressed in a maroon colored dress shirt tucked inside black trousers secured with a sleek black belt. His feet were covered in black dress shoes as well. The sleeves to his shirt were rolled up and Sakura's breath nearly got stuck in her throat at the tense atmosphere.

Gaara's arrogant sense of authority was rivaling Sasuke's; the two were staring at each other calmly before Gaara flicked his eyes over to her. His eyebrows furrowed and emerald eyes flashed in anger before he approached Sakura. Sakura bit her bottom lip as she stood her ground, ready to take whatever he gave her.

"Sakura, what the hell are you doing with him? He's _dangerous_," his voice was calm, but after years of knowing him, Sakura could easily sense the malice hidden underneath.

She glared at him, looking up at him fiercely, her 5'4" height suddenly seeming much taller than Gaara's 6'0". "What am I doing with him? You have no right to question me about the people I hang out with!" she bit out coldly before gesturing to Matsuri sitting inside the Audi R8, "Besides—I don't see how you should be angry considering you're with _her_!"

Gaara's expression froze and his arm reached out, about to grab her hand when Sasuke intervened, grabbing the redhead's arm and giving him a threatening look. Gaara snarled and turned around, roughly shaking his arm out of Sasuke's hard grip. He glared at Sasuke before returning his gaze to Sakura. "_This_ is the friend you've been with?"

Sakura didn't reply, prompting him to further speak. "I demand you stop seeing him," Gaara commanded, his arms crossed and his expression livid.

Sakura's jade green eyes widened before shock tagged itself all over her face. A small chuckle escaped from her throat before she took a deep breath, "No, Gaara. If there's anyone I'm going to stop seeing, it's you. You've lied to me too many times," she gave him a stare that was icier than Antarctica during the Ice Age; "You said you stopped meeting Matsuri. But now I can see clearly that you _never_ stopped. Look—let's just be finished. This little fling we've had has gone on far too long."

"What are you—!" he made a motion to grab her again but Sakura backed away from him, a determined look plastered on her face. Sasuke looked on at the two with concealed interest as he leaned against the hood of his car, his muscles tense and ready to pounce if the redhead was about to initiate any more physical contact.

Sakura glared at him, "Don't touch me! This is what you wanted! You've always yearned to go crawling back to her! I'm _sick_ of trying to live up to the expectations you created for me from _her_ image! She was your first, and I'll always be _second_! We're done!" the pinkette whirled around, catching Sasuke's gaze before furrowing her eyebrows, walking towards the passenger seat of the car.

Gaara growled before taking off after her, "_Sakura_!"

Before the redhead could come any closer to her, Sasuke stood in between them, a vicious glare now peering down at Gaara from his 6'3" height. "Just leave," Sasuke murmured.

"_Stay _**out**_ of this_!"

And then he saw red.

"Sasuke!" Sakura ran over to Sasuke as Gaara retrieved his fist. Sasuke twitched as he clutched the side of his cheek where the redhead just punched him. Sakura glared at Gaara, "Just go back to Matsuri, Gaara. You know yourself that you _need_ her," with that, she helped Sasuke slip inside his driver's seat before brushing past Gaara coldly to get to her side of the car.

Sasuke started the engine immediately, pulling the shift to Drive before roaring the engine, making Gaara stagger back before the Ultimate Aero took off, leaving the redhead and the brunette in the car to stare at them.

X

_When the __**mind**__ wants,  
but the _heart **doesn't**_,  
__forget the mind__._

X

"_...!" _

His eyes closed on instinct and his mouth twisted unattractively as he winced again. Sakura rolled her eyes as she dabbed at the bruise that was starting to form on his cheek. Sasuke leaned further back onto the couch, trying to avoid her touch before she reached out and grabbed his shoulders, forcing him to sit still. He glared at her and she glared right back. "If you don't sit still, I'm going to let you suffer on your own!" she threatened before continuing her task.

Sasuke bit his tongue, barely squinting as she placed her left hand on his thigh to balance herself. He was sitting on the couch while she was kneeling on the floor, treating him. His back was bent over so she could reach his face, and from this angle, he could see every distinct feature of hers.

She treated his bruise with a tender expression, jade eyes twinkling ever so slightly as she focused on the task at hand. Her front teeth bit the bottom of her rosy pink lips while her nose occasionally scrunched up in concentration. Her cheeks were slightly tinted pink, probably from the nearness of him. He inwardly smirked as he watched her eyes flicker towards his and quickly look back to his bruise in embarrassment.

He reveled in her awkward pain before he took the liberty to break the silence for once. "He was your boyfriend?" he questioned silently, staring at her to see if she would have the confidence to meet his gaze. The dabbing on his bruise stopped temporarily and he saw her falter before continuing. He could tell she was about to stand up and walk away.

She pressed her lips together before staring at his bruise, avoiding eye contact with him. "Yes," she answered simply as she finished up, giving him one last dab from the cotton ball before closing the cap on the bottle of alcohol on the coffee table behind her. She hesitated before looking up at Sasuke's eyes, not surprised to see him watching her intently. "We weren't really serious. It's only been going on for a year, and I was more of a shoulder to cry on for him. I was his rebound after he ended things with Matsuri—the woman in the car earlier. Anyways, Gaara is an incredibly big bastard when he wants to be."

It was silent for a while before he ventured to ask another question. _This is a first._ He mused the idea entertainingly in his head; this was one of the first times where he even tried to speak more than was necessary. _Dumb women and their weird powers. _"…But _you_ felt for him," it wasn't a question by the way he stated it. It was a conclusion—an obvious fact his mind had come up with just by analyzing her.

"I…" she fumbled around with her hands and the cotton ball, "I did."

She just sat there on her knees, clenching her hands and telling him what he secretly sought to know. The two kept their gazes on each other for a long time, just staring. He tried to read her thoughts. She, in turn, tried to read his. Her jade eyes pierced into his onyx ones as the two battled out in their silent staring contest. Sakura sucked in a breath when she felt his eyes soften slightly. Then, as fast as his eyes had softened, they hardened again, forcing her to look away.

_Not good... _she inwardly gulped for air at the suddenly tense atmosphere between them.

Sasuke looked away soon after, his jaw hardening and he gave an almost unnoticeable nod. Sakura blinked, rubbing at her dry eyes before standing up. She hastily walked away from the coffee table and was about to leave the bottle of alcohol until she felt his hand grab hers. Her whole body froze and she crooked her head to the side to look at him.

It was silent for a while as they met each others eyes once again. Sakura's jade ones flickered left and right while Sasuke stared at her; unfaltering. She was about to take her hand back before his voice forced her to stop all movement once more. "The alcohol. You left it there..." he trailed off awkwardly looking to the side, giving a quirk with his chin towards the bottle of alcohol standing forgotten on the coffee table.

Sakura fought down the small tint that rose to her cheeks as she stuttered, "O-Oh, thanks," she muttered, stuttering slightly before taking her hand back from his loosening grip. Then, with lightning speed, her hand reached for the alcohol bottle and grabbed it quickly. Her feet then took off to the bathroom hastily and it took the Uchiha all he had not to chuckle at her apparent nervousness.

Sasuke sat there limply for a while, just staring at thin air as he contemplated the events that took place all in the course of one day. _Danzo is at the Hyuuga's household. _His mind kept coming back to that one thought, his eyebrows scrunching and furrowing continuously as he sighed. Leaning back against the couch, he brought a hand up to grasp some hair in frustration.

"Sasuke, go sleep. It's been a long day."

He reflexively jumped up, immediately searching for the owner of the voice only to see an amused pink haired woman standing at the threshold of her bedroom. Sakura placed two hands on her hips to raise an eyebrow eloquently at her housemate. She had changed into a pink tank top and white flannel pants. "I hope you aren't expecting me to be liable for you catching a cold," she spoke in a teasing voice.

Sasuke rolled his eyes before standing up. Sakura continued to watch him as he approached the hallway, turning off the lights in the living room. She eyed him curiously as he walked into the threshold of his own room. As her hand reached out to shut the door of her own bedroom, his voice drew out and she paused to look at him.

"You're liable for almost everything I do now."

Jade green eyes blinked in surprise as she took in his words. When his door shut closed behind him, she let a small smile drift onto her face. Stepping back into her room and closing the door behind her, she chuckled gently before retreating to her bed.

_Ah…I guess I am, huh?_

X

_**Up&Down  
**_elevator.  
**Life **is like an  
_elevator. _

It goes  
_**Up&  
Down**_.

X

"Who is this Danzo person anyways?"

Sakura looked at him from the corner of her eyes as they walked down the fruits and vegetables region. Her hair was left down, waving to her shoulders like always while she sported a simple button down flannel green and white plaid shirt-dress. The sleeves of the dress were rolled up to her elbows and the first couple buttons of the dress were undone. A thin dark brown belt encompassed her slender waist. Her feet were adorned in a pair of white peep toe wedges.

From beside her, the handsomely dark haired male carried the ever vibrant red shopping basket. Sasuke's hair was in its usual defying-all-gravity style as he wore a simple navy v-neck top that seemed to hug his lean muscles perfectly, showing off his biceps, along with a pair of dark washed jeans. His feet were encased in his typical black combat boots. Even in the simplest of clothes, he had an air about him that made people turn to stop and stare. It was as if the whole market had cleared to make way for him.

Sakura mused about the idea in her head as Sasuke heaved a sigh. "Danzo is one of the most prominent racers in the red light district of Fire County—Oto. He's supposedly been racing for more than fifteen years. He holds a large record for drug dealing, street races, and raping. No one was able to beat him at races," he paused to let a confident smirk grace his features, "until I came along."

The pinkette stopped walking to hesitantly pick out some apples with the male watching from behind her. "So, you're like what, the unstoppable king of racing now? For beating him?" she raised an eyebrow in amusement as she contemplated the thought of Sasuke being surrounded by street racers chanting his name. She failed to keep a giggle inside her mouth as her imagination ran loose.

Sasuke shook his head at the slightly random giggle before opting not to ask what was going on in her mind. "No. We don't have titles—titles are for people bound by the rules and regulations that set those titles up. I'm bound by _nothing_," his eyes hardened and Sakura turned to face him with her mouth agape. She opened her mouth, as if about to say something, but promptly closed it to consider saying something else. He caught the way her eyes flickered left and right in hesitation.

"Then _what_ are you now? What does he want with you?" she continued picking out the apples nonchalantly as if the dramatic pause never took place.

Sasuke sighed once more as his eyes examined the vicinity of the market, "I'm just the first guy who beat Danzo. He wants a rematch with me, but his idea of a rematch isn't what normal people's are. Danzo's rematches often end up in his opponent either becoming crippled or just plain _dead_," his eyes narrowed and the dark, tense atmosphere drifted around them once more as Sakura's jade eyes flew wide open in shock.

She stuttered on her words, placing an apple down quickly before she dropped it, "Then…so…Naruto and Neji…and Tenten and they don't let you come to the hideout because it's possible Danzo might…" she looked around for the right word, "_Race_ you to the death?" she fit the pieces together one by one inside her head as she thought of his blonde haired best friend, "and Danzo is the type of person to do anything in his power to become the sole winner. So he'd even take Naruto as hostage if he finds out Naruto's at the hideout with him to lure you out."

Sasuke didn't reply, signaling that her assumptions were correct. "This guy's crazy!" she shouted as the idea spun in her head, "He's willing to pull all this off! Even during this time where even the slightest rash movement from him can cause the Black Ops to find out where all of the racers are located! If—if you guys race, it's going to cause a big uproar. It's going to bring in racers from other counties and cities. There's no doubt you'll all end up in jail with the way the police is hunting your tracks! Actually—I'm surprised you guys haven't been found out yet," her eyebrows scrunched up in momentary confusion. "_Why_ haven't you guys been found out yet?"

Finally done with the apples, they proceeded down the aisle to stop to pick up a box of strawberries. Sasuke eyed the gleaming red tomatoes beside them, "Danzo had a yakuza boss help him out. The yakuza cleared out the whole Oto district, no traces left behind. Most of them are at Neji's, or taking refuge somewhere else. The yakuza affiliate that Danzo is connected to is a powerful one. He's powerful enough to build up a whole alibi for the Black Ops to solve."

Before she could ask what the alibi was, Sasuke answered her while motioning for her to pick some tomatoes, "He led the Black Ops far away from Konoha and Oto. They're possibly in either Lightning or Water County. Without the Black Ops, the police are too scared to even approach Oto," his eyes darkened remarkably at the sound of 'police' before something else drew his attention away, "Not that one!"

Sakura widened her eyes in shock as Sasuke promptly took the tomato she was about to place in the basket and placed it back in its shelf. He instead opted for a gleaming red one that seemed to catch the light perfectly. Sakura tried to keep her laughter hidden as she watched the way he inspected each tomato keenly, "Really? You like tomatoes? Is that why your skin is so flawless?" she chuckled as his eyes twitched.

Instead of retorting though, he shot her a charming smirk, "You think my skin is flawless?"

Sakura blushed as she regained her composure, "Anyone would! It's pure white and blemish free. Women everywhere would idolize you just for your skin," she scoffed as she turned away from him to scurry down the aisle towards some greenery.

The male behind her could only smirk wider as his ego increased in an even greater size.

X

Ino scoffed as she bit into her slice of apple. The blond haired female was currently situated on the chair inside Naruto's room. Naruto himself was lying on his bed, barely watching the TV as the sound went in one ear and out the other. Before he knew what was happening, a piece of apple had flown straight into his head, knocking his head to the side in shock.

It didn't take long for Naruto to bolt out of his bed to stare at Ino with weary eyes. "Oi! What was that for, you crazy chick?" Naruto cried out accusingly, dressed in his blue t-shirt and orange basketball shorts. He growled slightly before turning back to lie on his bed once more. Ino watched him with a dry stare as she popped another piece of apple into her mouth.

"You were thinking deeply. Like way too deeply for someone of your caliber," she smirked slightly as she ran a hand through her long, blond hair. It was let down today, falling just above the beginning of her bottom. An azure blue headband was worn on her head, showing off her clear skin and shining aqua blue eyes. "Anyways, if you're not going to watch the TV, give me the remote!"

"What do you mean someone of _**my**_ caliber! What's my caliber?" the male shouted in contempt as his left eye twitched. Even as he shouted at her, his hand blandly reached for the remote and handed it to her. His cerulean blue eyes immediately snapped back up her face to hear her answer. "What's my caliber?" he questioned loudly once more.

Ino rolled her eyes as she took the remote he handed her. Holding it in her hand, she took a moment to retort, "Do you really want to know?" with a challenging smirk, the female pressed some buttons on the remote and soon the channel switched to a show about cars. "Mmm, cars, delicious," she licked her lips as she eyed the cars on TV.

Naruto let his gaze linger on her for a while before shaking out of his stupor. "Hell yeah I want to know! What's my caliber?" he repeated the question for the third time. His eyes drifted to the TV as well, attention being caught by a nice looking model. "Heh, I'd definitely tune up that car if I could get my hands on it," he grinned at the sleek silver 2010 Rolls-Royce Ghost.

There was a long pause between them as they both took a moment to examine the car in awe. "Damn, I want one. That thing is sexy—no matter how boxy the hood is," she brushed off the Rolls-Royce's cubic hood, "Anyways, your caliber? Let's see…let's just say it's a surprise to see anyone like you thinking _deeply_," with a mischievous laugh, she tried not to be too smug about her successful retort.

Cerulean blue eyes blinked. "...Wait," he muttered; Ino rolled her eyes again, "Are you trying to say I'm _stupid_?"

Ino feigned a look of revolt and astonishment as she placed a mocking hand to her chest, gasping all the while. "You? Stupid? Why, no! I would never try to say such a thing!" she grinned sarcastically.

"Okay, that's good," Naruto grinned right back at her before turning his attention back to the television.

Ino could only shake her head at him in hopelessness. "So, did Sakura say anything to you when she came?" Ino inquired innocently as she began to cut open another apple. "Anything important?" she cut the apple into sixths before placing them into the clear bowl once more. She looked up when she didn't hear a reply from the male.

Naruto shook his head no as his eyes were fixed on the TV, "Nope! Just some crap from Sasuke-teme about Danzo. Is the old man _still_ here?" his face twisted up in disgust at the thought of Danzo.

Ino sighed as she nodded, reaching for another piece of apple. "Yup, seems like it. Didn't you hear all that screaming and moaning coming from his room? You've got to hand it to him—he's a sugar daddy that every girl wants," she stated the fact like it was obvious. It suddenly became pitch silent and she looked up to meet Naruto's disturbed and grossed out stare. Her aqua blue eyed widened when she realized what she had implied. "Not that _I_ want him! Competitive pedophiles aren't my type!" she quickly defended herself.

Naruto grinned slyly as he lifted his eyes from the TV with commercial on. "Then what is your type, eh?" he had a keen look in his eye that made Ino twitch rather rapidly.

"Stop that. You look like a teenage rapist. It's nasty and disturbing. My type isn't any of your business," she swiftly replied before taking out her phone when she felt it vibrate. She held up one finger, signaling for him to be quiet. Sliding the answer key with a thumb, she lifted the phone to her ear. "Shikamaru?" her voice drew out clearly.

Naruto looked at her with perked ears at hearing the name.

"Eh? The Black Ops migrated to Water County? That's great! The cops won't even dare to step foot near Oto or this place!" Ino beamed as she listened to the voice on the other line. "They're looking for Sasuke to give them information? But that's not—okay, bye," she cut off abruptly before sighing as she placed the phone back to her lap.

Naruto raised an eyebrow at her. "Who was that?"

Ino grinned proudly at him. "Sakura's and my childhood friend. Nara Shikamaru—he works for the KMPD. He knows everything that goes on in there concerning their plans and actions since he's a computer specialist. He updates me and a couple other precious people that know him on the inner workings of the KMPD!" she spoke of him with a sweet and dreamy smile on her face.

"I'm guessing _he's_ your type. What did he say about Sasuke?" Naruto ignored her love struck expression as his mind reeled back to the statement about Sasuke.

At that, Ino promptly frowned and her face took on a grave look, "Since the KMPD is run by the Uchiha family, they're trying to find Sasuke to get him to rat on us," her eyebrows furrowed as the thought crossed her mind.

Naruto shook his head at her, "Sasuke-teme wouldn't rat! He's not like that, even if he is a bastard half the time. Anyways, those conniving Uchiha bastards! Sasuke hasn't contacted them for a year and they were too ashamed of him to even _call _him by phone. Now they're trying to _use_ him. One day, I'm going to fuck their cocky cop asses up," he snarled dangerously.

Ino sighed as she looked out the window, trying to avoid Naruto's pissed off phase.

"Well, all we can do for now is hope that they don't find him."

X

"Ah! Finally done! The fridge is going to be stocked!" Sakura grinned as the two held the bags of groceries in their hand. She hummed softly as they exited the market, turning out towards the street to walk to her apartment. When she heard an annoyed grunt from behind her, Sakura turned to look at a peeved Sasuke. She raised an eyebrow eloquently at him, "What?"

He shot her a glare that could kill, "Why did we _walk_ to here?" he was holding most of the groceries with three bags on each hand.

Sakura rolled her eyes as she continued to lead the way, "It's broad daylight—I hardly think it's possible for you to drive your flashy car around civilly without speeding and scaring the crap out of all bystanders," she said everything in one whole breath as if it was an obvious fact that everyone knew. "Besides, this is good exercise for you."

The only audible reply she received was a murderous hiss. "Man up," she retorted without even looking at him. Sasuke sighed from behind her as he continued to follow her. His eyes roamed around the area before they stopped abruptly on a pair of men dressed in black police uniforms. He immediately reached forward to grab Sakura's hand, forcing her to whirl around and face him with a confused expression. "What's wrong—!" before she could say another word, he already began to pull her towards the opposite direct. "Sasuke—what?"

"_Oi, Shisui, it's Sasuke!" _

Sakura turned around and gaped as she saw the two policemen follow after them. "Sasuke, they're following us! We can't outrun them! How do they know your name?" she managed to ask while panting as he started dragging her into a run. She clattered down the pavement in her wedges as he led them to—_Kami forbid_—who knows where.

_What the hell are Shisui and Obito doing here! _Sasuke cursed in his mind as they made a right turn down an alleyway. He didn't get a chance to reply to Sakura's question as the two ran through a series of alleys and walls. "Shit!" he cursed as he accidentally kicked a random bottle of beer lying around. "Watch out!" he called out to Sakura who in turn dodged the broken glasses of the bottle. They panted heavily as Sakura looked behind to see the two policemen catching up to them.

"They're catching up!" she called out in warning as they exited the alleyway. Sasuke grunted in acknowledgment as they made a right turn, running for a bit before he pulled on her wrist, making another sharp right turn into another alley. Sasuke continued to pull on her wrist, leading her down the alley as she looked back every once in a while to check up on the policemen.

"_Sasuke, stop! It's me, Obito!" _

_Oh my god, where the hell are we going? _

Sakura gasped as she almost tripped on her own feet had Sasuke not snapped her out of it. "Sasuke! Run faster!" she called out to him as she spotted the policemen increase their pace. "They're speed—ack!" before she could finish her sentence, she was suddenly being dragged like a mad woman. "Holy shi—!" she couldn't even curse properly as they passed through walls in a blinding sprint.

He kept her close to him, a hand firmly grasping hers. Sakura blinked as the scenery blurred past her; his hand was warm and slightly rough, but still rather soft. She'd thought that after spending so much time grasping a steering wheel, his hand would be pasty and peeling. However, his skin was incredibly nice to feel and she felt herself interlock her fingers into his and grasp his hand just a little tighter. Reality came crashing back to her when they scarcely dodged a man who was rolling a cart down the street.

"Sorry!" she turned around to give a rapid apology to the horror stricken man. Sasuke turned around as well to see the two men chasing after him halt to a stop to let the carting man leave. He took the opportunity to take a left turn; leading Sakura down the sidewalk a little more before they turned left once more right into another alleyway. Soon, their sprint slowed down to a run and finally a jog as they tried to catch their breaths.

He stopped running and Sakura breathed uneasily as she leaned against the wall immediately. Sasuke panted as he unconsciously caged her body with his, his hands at either side of her head against the brick wall. They both breathed in silence for a while before Sakura's laugh snapped him out of his stupor.

It started out as a light chuckle, but soon evolved into a booming laughter. He twitched as he looked down at her to see her shaking petite form trapped by his. She shook in laughter as her eyes twinkled, "This is the most running I've done in a long time—I bet you don't even _know _how to get back!" she stopped talking to continue to laugh and before she knew it, she had stuffed her face into his chest to muffle her laughter.

"You enjoy this?"

She chuckled as her laughter died down, feeling the vibrato of his voice through his chest. "Kind of—it's crazy but the only running I ever do is running late to meetings. This is _refreshing_," she giggled again.

"I'm guessing you're completely over that redhead."

She groaned at the mention of Gaara. "Don't even say the word 'redhead.' It makes me nauseous all over again! I don't even want to think about him for another minute of my life," she sighed as she closed her eyes and just laid her head in peace on his chest. Sasuke inwardly relaxed at her near proximity. Her fresh market apple scent drifted into his senses as he suddenly felt woozy. He suddenly wondered whether she would taste like apples too.

_Fuck me. _

Sasuke sharply cursed in his brain as he shook his head to clear of the not so innocent thoughts that protruded into his mind. He looked down once again to see her steady her breathing, her face placed against his chest and his arms boxing her in. Then—he felt Sakura breathe in his own scent and soon enough, they both froze in their positions in realization.

Sakura stumbled backwards into the wall as she hastily removed her head from his chest, a visible red tinting her cheeks. "I—I—sorry…" she couldn't even form a complete sentence as her jade eyes flickered left and right like they always did when she was nervous.

Concluding that she had lent against him unconsciously, he cleared this throat and took his arms off the wall to drop back to his sides. "It's ok," he responded affirmatively. An awkward silence drew between the two before he heaved a sigh and grabbed her arm, leading her down the alleyway towards the way they came from. Sakura looked up at him inquisitively before he looked down with his onyx orbs to meet her gaze.

He pursed his lips before looking straight ahead. "Let's go home."

Her eyes widened in astonishment before they softened considerably in understanding. A knowing smile bloomed on her rosy pink lips as she looked up at him discreetly through her lashes.

"Aa…let's go _home_."

X

It took her a couple more minutes to voice aloud the next thought that crossed her mind.

"Damn it, Sasuke! Where the hell _is_ home?"

X

_**Home  
is where the  
Heart  
is. **_

_**Except  
when you  
don't have  
a Heart  
or a Home. **_

X

"Ah! If only we could find that Danzo bastard!"

Uchiha Itachi heaved a sigh as he sat down in the chair opposite his father in the office. He looked at his father with an uninterested gaze as he opted to take in the scenery in the window behind Fugaku instead. Uchiha Fugaku, on the other hand, couldn't look more attentive as he took in the sight of his son, freshly back from a new case.

The handsome twenty six year old Uchiha was dressed in his all black police attire. Long, ravenous black hair was secured into a low ponytail and hawk like onyx eyes looked into his father's identical ones. He would have looked exactly like his father had Fugaku had black instead of brown and long instead of short hair. The two shared the same lines on either side of their faces.

"Itachi, I'd like you to do something for me."

Itachi raised an eyebrow at his father. "Yes, Father?" he practically wanted to shout—_Of course you want me to something for you. _Outwardly though, the elder Uchiha child kept his composure and merely revealed his fatigue.

Fugaku narrowed his eyes slightly, sensing the slightly mocking tone in his son's voice. Brushing it off, he continued. "I'd like for you to find your brother. Have him reveal the whereabouts of the rest of those beastly street racers and Oto inhabitants. Konoha will become famous for being able to capture them!" a small smile drifted onto Fugaku's face.

Onyx clashed with onyx.

There was no reply as Fugaku scrunched up his eyebrows before sending Itachi a knowing glare. "You don't object, correct, Itachi?"

Itachi simply sat there as he continued to look out the window of the office behind his father. His cool, sharp onyx eyes glimmered with a small hint of speculation as he remembered his last encounter with his brother.

Slowly, but surely, a plan formulated in his mind.

X

"I will find Sasuke."

* * *

**Second update in the summer! (: It's only been a month since my last update! **

**Wow, time flew by really fast this summer. School starts next week! I'd like to thank all the reviewers who still reviewed the last chapter even if it took almost a year for it to come out. I appreciate the reviews! **

**This chapter was short and filled with fluff. Of course it also introduced the issue of the **_**KMPD**_**—the Uchihas' very own police force. It's just sort of for me to pick up my writing and familiarize with the story plot line once again. This time, it's two pages shorter than the last chapter. This one's just a 13 page chapter. **

**Did you guys catch the new drama—My Girlfriend is a Nine Tailed Fox? It really makes me see Naruto in a different light because the fox is incredibly CUTE. **

**Thanks for all the support and please keep supporting me! (: **

X

**Once again, I'll definitely be back to fix up any grammatical errors. **

**(EDIT) I fixed all of the errors I could find! Sorry if I missed some!  
**

X

_Note_: None of these cars are created by me. They are real and belong to their respective creators and companies.

**Today's car—Gaara's 2010 Audi R8 GT! **

**It's not on the most expensive or fastest list, simply because Gaara is not involved with the whole street racing business, thus he needs no speedy car (even if the car itself is already an attention grabber.) It's powered by a 5.2 liter V10 hand built engine with 560 horsepower. It runs to 100 km in just 3.6 seconds! The maximum speed is 199 MPH. It's a rather attractive car; just like most of the past Audi models! **

**You can Google it by its name—but I doubt you'll be able to find a **_**champagne**_** red one. Perhaps just a red one. (: **

**The second car mentioned in the chapter was the 2010 Rolls-Royce Ghost. It's a pretty sexy car, I'll give you that. Boxy, though. You can also Google it by its name! **

X

**Reviews make me write. (: **

_Lots of Love,_

_XOXO Kaze-chan _


	7. Mayday

Summary: /SasuSaku/ AU She should have known better than to extend her help to him. Now, she has to deal with the many temptations clawing at her with the undeniably sexy street racer in her home. "Are you seducing me?" "…Are you seduced?" "N-No!" "Then no, I'm not." Slight crack.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, just the plot. I also don't own the songs at the beginning of each chapter. They belong to their respective artists.

Rating: T (Some content not suitable for children)

Warning: OOC!Sasuke!

* * *

"_Why don't you let him go?"_

His emerald eyes peered into hers intently,  
silently waiting for her response.

"_You don't understand…"_

She looked back at him confidently,  
wiping away her tears.

He raised an eyebrow in question.

"_What?"_

A bittersweet smile.

"_He didn't betray me." _

He chuckled darkly.

"_How can you be so sure?"_

At that, she casted him an ominous glare.

She raised her left hand.

"_Because he loves me…"_

His emerald eyes widened at  
the _ring_ on her finger.

"_and I love _him_." _

* * *

**Behind the Bars**

**7 . . . **

**Mayday **

* * *

_Mayday mayday mayday  
listen to my heart  
this is mayday mayday  
I don't have the time  
Mayday mayday mayday  
don't you understand?_

* * *

"How many days?" her voice was quiet and cracked slightly as she leaned back into her seat, clearing her throat softly. She forked a piece of chicken from her plate and lifted it to her mouth swiftly—pausing midway when she didn't receive a response from him. Her jade green eyes flickered up to peer at him curiously, her coral pink lips parting silently when she caught the expression on his face. It was the first time she ever saw him with such a far off and distant haze in his normally bold and cold onyx eyes.

She was dressed in a white halter turtle-neck mini dress that hugged every visible curve on her body and reached just at her mid thighs. She had a sheer unbuttoned heather gray cardigan to cover up and her soft pink hair was secured in a bohemian side braid that rested on her right shoulder with loose strands framing her face softly. Her secured hair showed off the pair of sterling silver earrings that dangled and dropped down from her ears elegantly. Completing the look was a pair of white satin peep toe pumps.

Meanwhile, Sasuke wore a pair of dark washed slim jeans and a white v-neck top with a navy and white soccer/track jacket on top. As always, his black combat boots were a given.

Minutes into the pause of their conversation and he still withheld a reply.

For a second, she felt scared to break the tense silence that had suddenly settled over their brunch. Clearing her throat, she mentally mused that she would be even more horrified if she didn't break the deathly quiet atmosphere. "Sasuke…" she muttered gently, coaxing him away from his out of space state. "I asked you, how much longer le…left?" her own eyes widened when she stuttered on the last word.

_What the hell? _She cursed in her mind at the weakness present in her voice at the moment. Sasuke finally gazed over at him, his onyx eyes abandoning their glazed expression as he opened his mouth to answer the question.

"I don't know."

Somewhere inside, Sakura could feel herself take a deep relieved breath. Brushing off her inner feelings, she watched him pop a baby tomato into his mouth, "You don't know?" she repeated his answer in a question, blinking slowly as he swallowed before proceeding to look at her. Numbly, he nodded before stabbing another baby tomato with his fork, bringing it to his mouth as it caught the light luminously.

_What's this awkward moment about? _Sakura furrowed her eyebrows slightly, piercing her own fork into another piece of chicken. As she was about to eat the piece of meat, his voice broke the silence and she looked at him in astonishment as she dropped her fork back onto her plate. Her mind blanking out, she had to ask him to repeat what he just said, "What?"

Sasuke scoffed slightly as he looked at her from across the table, "I _asked_ whether you wanted me to leave or not."

Her eyes shot up sharply as she gaped, her mouth opening in surprise and he had to return her bewildered gaze with his own raised eyebrow. Sakura recovered smoothly, her eyes jumping to look at something in the left corners of her eyes before she covered up her humorous display, "Ah, you've been here for a month already, it'd be troubling towards you if I made you leave all of a sudden."

"Che," Sasuke looked at her as if she was an alien who just grew a second head, "Just weeks ago, you couldn't wait for me to leave your apartment. Now you're worried that it'd be troublesome for me to leave all of a sudden?" he chuckled deeply and Sakura had to frown at him for him to expand his idea.

"Sakura."

"_What_?" her tone was almost accusing as she now gazed at him with annoyance.

A smirk graced his features once again and it took her nearly everything she had not to yell at him in exasperation. In the nick of time, he spoke right when she was about to unleash her anger on him. "You're starting to like me," he said it as a statement but a couple weeks were all it took for her to know that it was his way of asking a question.

At this, she had to scoff. "I never took you as one with a big imagination, Sasuke," at the sight of his eyes beginning to slightly twitch, Sakura rolled her own as she shook her head hopelessly at him. "I'm just glad," she mumbled incoherently to herself. Unfortunately, it seemed that he had heard it because the obnoxious smirk had return to his face.

A blush bloomed across her cheeks and Sakura had to look away in order to try to hide her flushed face. "I mean—it gets lonely, you know, living by yourself…so I'm just glad that there will be company for at least a little while longer," the last part came out as whisper and she still couldn't bring up the courage to look at him straight in the face.

"I understand."

Her head nearly whirled back around to gape at him, "You _do_?"

Then, biting into a piece of tomato nonchalantly, he nodded at her rather simply. Sakura blinked, dumbfounded at his abrupt statement. His facial features suddenly twitched, however, and she didn't—_couldn't_—miss the smirk that was ever so sarcastically making its way back onto his absurdly handsome face.

"I told you—you're starting to like me."

…

Her jade orbs steely glared at him, she seemed as if she was trying to dig a hole into his forehead with her eyes.

"I don't sympathize with the girls who think you're sexy when you tease people."

X

_i can't wait  
to believe in you._

X

Sasuke sighed quietly as he washed the remainder of the dishes, turning around to send a glare towards the pinkette who was comfortably situated on the couch, watching the TV and sipping her tea as if she didn't just make her housemate wash a mountain of dishes. Of course, they were all _his_ dishes, thus she couldn't bother with them anyways.

Absentmindedly, he rinsed the soapy dish with the water while craning his head to speak to her. "It's rude to make guests do your dishes, isn't it?" he hissed as his left eye twitched, wanting very much to drop the darned dish onto the floor already.

Humming a tune from her spot on the spot, Sakura barely turned around to reply, cheekily smiling all the way, "Sasuke, let's be real. You're not really a _guest_ anymore, are you? I mean, you use my laptop as if it's yours; you eat from my fridge even more than I do, and you sleep longer than I ever have in this apartment! People would think _I'm_ the temporary live-in gal if they saw us together," she smirked triumphantly when she saw his mouth open and close for a second, unable to retort properly.

After she was sure he was out of complaints, she turned back to her TV show and sighed softly as she watched the girl run frantically in the airport to find her man. "It's so sad isn't it? There's always an airport scene in dramas…it makes you wonder if one day, you'll actually be part of an airport scene in real life. I hope I won't, I don't think I can handle all of the dramatic music and running in heels," she contemplated jokingly as the music resonating from the TV made her toes curl in anticipation.

Even as she heard the sound of water being turned off and his light footsteps make their ways towards her, she didn't look away from the TV, too wrapped up in her drama. The couch shifted slightly as the weight of his body pushed down on it. Sakura peered at him from the corner of her eyes and gaped silently as she saw that he was staring directly at her too.

They stayed like that for minutes, just staring at each other as they weighed their options on what to say in their heads. Sakura felt her throat run dry as her jade eyes couldn't tear themselves away from his intense onyx gaze. She breathed in deeply as she realized that unlike many others, she couldn't read him at all, that when she looked into his eyes, they weren't windows to his soul. They were opaque and mysterious—dark like midnight and haunting like ghosts. She couldn't erase the image of his eyes from her mind. He was staring straight at her, aiming those piercing eyes right at her and made it hard for her to breathe.

_I never thought suffocation would feel so good. _The thought ran across her mind without her knowing and she continued to stare at him, to try to pick his mind. _He's so closed. There's no hint, no sign, no little clue as to what he is—who he is. I don't know him at all. _His onyx orbs were calculating, examining and every one of her aspect. For a second, she thought she saw a tiny little knowing glimmer in his eyes.

_But why do I feel like he knows everything—_

"I hope you know that real life is not a drama. Even if you end up chasing someone in an airport, there won't be dramatic music blasting from some damned invisible stereo and you wouldn't be wearing heels if you were in your right mind," he spoke as if they didn't just have the most intense staring contest ever and as if he was replying directly to her comment from before.

—_about me? _

Before she could respond, a knock on the apartment door forced them to break their gazes away from each other. Sakura's eyes darted towards the door and she got up slowly, faltering slightly as she looked back at Sasuke. He caught her hesitance and nodded silently at her as he got up and swiftly moved in front of her towards the door. Sakura followed closely behind him as he made his way towards the door. Sasuke stepped carefully as he leaned towards the peep hole in the door.

Sakura looked at him curiously when she saw him flinch as he moved away from the peep hole. "Who is it?" she questioned quietly.

Instead of replying to her question, he simply unlocked the door and pulled it open, coming face to face with—

"Itachi."

Sakura examined their new guest with suspicious eyes as Sasuke opened the door wider to let him in. Itachi walked in, graceful as ever and even more so intimidating than Sasuke. She recognized him to be the man she met at the bridge near the beach that one night when Naruto had called repeatedly. She racked her brain for further information and gasped when she remembered what he had called Sasuke that night. _Little brother. _

"You're Sasuke's older brother?" the question escaped from her lips before she could stop herself and she steeled herself for the incoming glare from Sasuke's direction. As she predicted, she felt his glare penetrate the back of her head as their guest smirked in amusement at her.

The man's looming figure bent slightly as he craned his neck to look at her due to their great difference in height. Sakura could care less about her height at the moment as the man looked at her inquisitively. "Yes, and I suppose you are Sakura. I have heard much about you from various people. I thank you for being generous enough to provide my foolish and most likely ungrateful little brother a shelter. My name is Itachi," he smirked charmingly at her and Sakura mentally encouraged herself not to swoon.

She cleared her throat, standing up tall and straight as Sasuke sighed from behind her. "You're right—he is a little bit ungrateful, and definitely very foolish," she turned to smirk cockily at Sasuke as she said these words.

Itachi smirked as well before chuckling deeply, "Well then, allow me to express my gratitude in his place. Without you, I'm sure he'd be damned seeing as how he would've gotten caught already," the older Uchiha's tone was taunting as ever and Sasuke could only clench his jaw to bear it as he stared at him.

Sakura's eyes danced with laughter as they flew to meet Sasuke's twitching ones. She smirked at him, "I'm sure he'd be damned without me too," she laughed out loud when Sasuke grunted in disapproval at the conversation between Itachi and her.

Itachi chuckled from beside her before he looked at Sasuke with a passive expression once again. "Sasuke, we need to talk about Father," both of the brothers' mouths curved downwards slightly in light frowns. Sakura looked between them, not missing the resemblance of a negative look on both of their faces as the word 'Father' was mentioned. She raised an eyebrow inquisitively at Sasuke but he simply shook his head at her.

Sasuke's hand went to his back pocket and searched for something before coming back out with the keys to his Ultimate Aero. Sakura looked at him in surprise as he sighed and nodded at her, "Take my car and go to the mall or something…I need to talk to him," he explained to her as she eyed him with an almost accusing expression. Itachi peered on at the two in amusement, noticing the silent exchanges between their gazes.

Sakura's eyes glimmered with defiance, but softened immediately when Sasuke's eyes managed to portray a look of defeat. Itachi's lips curved upwards in a knowing smirk as he opened his mouth to help his younger brother, "Miss Sakura, I assure you that your trip will not extend to more than about an hour. Our conversation will be quick," he nodded gently at Sakura as she hesitated slightly.

After another moment of reluctance, she sighed with defeat and finally nodded, "Alright, but I'll be back in an hour," without further ado, she grabbed the keys from Sasuke's hand and disappeared into her bedroom only to reappear quickly with her purse. Sakura's jade eyes flashed slightly as she looked between the two brothers with hidden unease. Her eyebrows furrowed slightly as she opened her mouth hesitantly only to close it. Pursing her lips, she sent a lingering gaze towards Sasuke.

Sasuke reciprocated her gaze as he nodded at her, his eyes softened in the minimalist manner possible.

_I'll be fine. _

Sakura understood his gaze and her facial expression relaxed as she breathed a small sigh of relief. Itachi raised an eyebrow from the side as he watched the exchange with keen curiosity. Sakura turned around to look at Itachi and smiled, "Alright then, I'll leave him in your care, Itachi-san," she raised her hand, along with the keys, and waved to the two brothers while walking towards the door.

After she exited the apartment and the door closed with a firm click, Itachi crooked his neck to see the annoyed expression on Sasuke's face. Itachi smirked in amusement, "What?" he asked the younger brother as Sasuke glared at him with the corners of his lips twitching slightly.

Sasuke grunted and turned, leading him towards the couch.

_She didn't even call me "Sasuke-san" during our first meeting…lucky bastard as ever… _

Itachi sighed with unwavering amusement as he watched the array of surprisingly vivid emotions race in his little brother's eyes.

X

_I don't know you.  
I don't need to.  
Just one touch—  
I'm yours. _

X

A hum escaped from Sakura's lips as she made a right turn into the parking lot of the café. Quickly finding a spot between two bulky vans, she parked the overly flashy Ultimate Aero and swiftly got out of the car, locking it absentmindedly as she paced to the front door of the café. She entered the quaint little café and smiled towards a woman passing by her. A waiter quickly led her to a table and set out the menu before leaving her alone. Sakura thanked him as she took the menu and flipped through it with nimble fingers, her eyes clouding up as her mind ignored the words on the pages.

_I wonder what they're talking about… Itachi-san did mention something about their father…hmm… I really hate being curious. _With an exasperated sigh, her jade eyes found an interesting item on the menu. She called over the waiter and quickly ordered before returning to her thoughts. _So the Uchiha family is actually a notorious police department. How is it that I've been so uninformed? Working with Kakashi-san really does make me live under a rock._

"Sakura?"

Her head shot up and her eyes widened as she sought for the source of the voice that called her. Once she turned around to see Ino along with Nara Shikamaru, a small smile lit upon her face as Ino grinned excitedly. "Hey, it really is her! Hurry up, Shika-kun!" she left the lazily strolling computer specialist to run to Sakura's table, grabbing the empty seat beside her.

Ino's long blonde hair was secured in a bun and she was dressed in a simple spaghetti strapped white and yellow floral sundress along with tan colored sandals. A bright smile occupied her face as her aqua blue eyes shone under the light. "I've been meaning to talk to you ever since I met you at Hyuuga's the other day!" the blonde chattered cheerily as she paid no heed to the brunette haired man beside her.

Sakura sent an amused smirk towards Shikamaru's way, "I feel kind of bad for you, Shikamaru. Ino's loudness has gotten louder the past couple years," Sakura laughed as Shikamaru sighed, nodding and agreeing with her. The computer specialist was dressed in a military green colored button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows along with gray jeans and brown high tops. His hair was tied in his signature high ponytail that hilariously resembled an all too spiky pineapple.

Ino twitched as she playfully jabbed Sakura in the arm. Sakura winced jokingly, rubbing her arm in mock pain as she snapped at the blonde, "Heeey, that hurts, blondie!"

Ino smirked and crossed her arms, "Man up, Sakura!"

"Why, you—!"

Shikamaru cut in between the two as he sent a cautious look towards Ino, "Ino…there's not much time left."

Ino's energy died down a little as she calmed down. Sakura looked at them in confusion and questioned Ino hesitantly, "Ino, what's going on?" there was suddenly a discomforting atmosphere settling around the table after Shikamaru spoke. Ino looked at Shikamaru and when he nodded at her, she let out a sigh and bit her lip before looking determinedly looking at Sakura.

"Sakura...you know what Sasuke's family does for a living right?"

Sakura nodded, remembering his family was an infamous league of policemen that was responsible for the protection of Konoha. Everyone in the Uchiha family was known to become involved in any kind of law or criminal justice career. Sasuke was the black sheep of the family and chose a different path, not wanting to become involved in the madness of law.

Ino pursed her lips, "Well, his father, Uchiha Fugaku, has basically issued all of the Uchiha policemen to report any sightings of Sasuke to him, and if possible, capture him as well. They plan to use Sasuke in an underground mission to get to the street racers and yakuza. They want to use him as a stone to hit two birds at the same time—both the illegal street racers and also any person belonging to the Oto District. Since Sasuke is a notorious street racer himself, of course he's bound to have info on us and the different people of the Oto District."

Shikamaru took over for Ino as she was running out of breath, "Normally, this wouldn't be much of a concern considering the fact that Sasuke would solely rat on things pertaining to Oto District only. Unfortunately, it's become an even bigger mess since the KMPD's plans to use Sasuke have been leaked to the different people of Oto District. The leader of the yakuza has ordered every member of the district to search for Sasuke and bring him to him. I'm guessing they want to shut him up and trap him before any of the KMPD's officers can find him."

Sakura gaped as she took in the information. Her eyes flickered as worry and fear slowly revealed themselves in her irises. She shook her head, though, and looked determinedly at the two, "No, they're absolutely not going to find him! I won't let him leave the apartment until you guys give us the ok!"

Ino looked at Sakura uneasily as she stared into her best friend's eyes. "That's not exactly all of what I'm worried about, Sakura. I'm worried about _you _too. If they find out that Sasuke's living with you, they will also do everything in their power to find you. They'll use every resource they have to look for you and use you as bait to lure Sasuke out. They won't hesitate to use force, they _will_ hurt you if they need to."

Sakura's jade orbs widened as she stared at Ino with shock. _What...they'll hurt me? _

"Sakura, you already got yourself involved with us the second you decided to let Sasuke stay with you. But please, I'm begging you, for your own sake…don't get any closer to him, Sakura. Don't fall in love with him. The closer you get to him, the easier and more likely you'll be a victim of all of this."

_Don't fall in love with him. _

A small pang pounded inside her chest as Sakura laughed quietly, "Pft, I definitely won't fall in love with him! Don't worry, I won't get any closer than is necessary to him! That jerk isn't my type!" Ino sent her a knowing look, letting Sakura know that she wasn't buying any of this. Sakura smiled, "Seriously, no worries. I know how to take care of myself and avoid trouble. Thanks for the info, though, Ino, Shika," she looked at both of them before standing up.

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow at her, "Leaving? Your food hasn't come out yet."

Sakura shook her head as she placed some money on the table, "You guys can have it! Think of this as thanks for everything you told me just now. I have to go, anyways! Well, I'll see you guys later!" she smiled and waved before hastily exiting the café.

Ino frowned as she stared after Sakura's retreating back.

_Sakura…you always do the exact opposite of what people say._

X

_suddenly,  
a part of me ached. _

X

Sasuke stood up as Itachi began to walk towards the door of the apartment. Before the elder brother left, he turned to look at Sasuke with a dead serious expression. "Sasuke, remember what I told you. Be smart and don't leave this place for the next couple of days. Father's intentions are pure, but he really has an unexpected way of planning so I suggest you stay put for now."

Sasuke sighed and rubbed the back of his neck tiredly, "I know," he muttered unenthusiastically as he opened the door for Itachi.

Itachi looked at Sasuke with unreadable eyes as he stepped out the door. The two brothers stared at each other with knowing looks before Itachi turned and parted, leaving Sasuke to close the door with a quiet bang. Sasuke leaned against the door and looked out of the window at the far opposite wall with a dull gaze. He raised a hand to his forehead and gritted his teeth silently.

"_Fuck_, am I bound to be under your control forever, Father?"

X

_Let  
_**Me**

_**l i v e**__. _

X

The door to the apartment quietly opened as Sakura's body lithely slid through. She shut the door behind her silently and turned in surprise to see the apartment dark with all of the lights turned off. "Have I been gone that long…?" she murmured to herself as she tried to see in the dim lighting of the place. The apartment was dully lit by the lights of the city and the moon that could be seen through the large glass window that was her wall. Sakura ran a hand from the top of her braid to the bottom as she let out a sigh.

"Sasuke?" she called out only to be answered with silence. Sakura blinked as she hesitantly reached for the light switch behind her. Deciding not to in case it would give her out if there was an intruder, she walked deeper into her apartment, carefully looking around with every step she took. Reluctantly, she approached the couch and upon squinting, she noticed there was a figure lying on it.

Curiosity plagued her mind as she walked closer towards the couch. _Hm? Could this be Sasuke? _She stepped directly in front of the couch and looked down. Upon closer inspection, she realized it was Sasuke who really was sleeping on the couch. He had his legs curled up with his head rest upon his arms. The moonlight shone on his face, highlighting his handsome dark features.

Sakura gaped at the sight of him for a moment before a soft smile broke out on her face. She bent down until she was kneeling on the ground, her face in front of his. Gently, silently, she rested her arms on the couch and laid her chin upon it to look at him further. _He really is too pretty to be a guy… _she thought in her mind, giggling inwardly as she realized he was much more feminine looking than she thought he was.

"Your eyelashes are long too…I'm jealous," she whispered to air as her eyes focused on the soft strands of lashes that extended from his eyelids. She lowered her eyelids as she breathed in the night air. "Hm, isn't this kind of reversed? Usually, it's supposed to be the guy that gawks at the girl's sleeping face… I guess you look good enough to pass as the girl," Sakura chuckled before closing her eyes as well.

It was then that it struck her.

_Don't fall in love with him._

Her eyes shot open and she gasped when she saw his onyx eyes wide open and staring straight back at her. "S-Sas…uke…" her voice strained and broke as she realized he didn't break away from the eye contact. She kept her eyes steadily on him as he continued to stare into her jade eyes illuminated by the light present outside of the glass window wall. Sakura's lips parted slightly as the urge to blink overcame her.

Her eyes fluttered and the moment seemed as if it was ruined, but alas, Sasuke kept his gaze on her and Sakura was trapped under his eyes. It was intense—like fire—and it felt far more intimate than any touch. His gaze was enough to burn her to the core and she shivered unconsciously.

"Sakura…"

His voice drummed inside her ears and she felt her heart pound inside of her body. Every beat was suddenly louder than normal and the sound of him saying her name repeated in her mind like a broken record. She felt as if she was falling, the tingling feeling lit in her stomach and she could only freeze in place when he began to lean forward towards her.

Sasuke kept a steady gaze on her as he lifted himself closer to her face. His hand raised and her eyes barely caught it moving to softly touch her distinct pink hair. She gulped and tried hard not to speak.

Sakura held her breath as she let her thoughts run amuck in her mind.

_Don't fall in love with him._

Ino's voice replayed itself over and over in her head, but she couldn't seem to move away even as he was centimeters from her lips.

_I can't. I can't. I can't. _

She chanted the mantra, but it wasn't working.

And now, his lips hovered above hers and his eyes were slowly fluttering closed and she couldn't seem to breathe anymore.

"_Sakura…" _

He whispered her name again and her eyes closed on reflex as she felt his lips give a ghost of a touch to her lips.

"_Go to sleep." _

X

_Don't fall in love with him. _

* * *

**I am so, so, so, so, so sorry for how late this update is! Dx**

**It's been more than half a year and I know I seemed as if I gave up on this, but I will never give up on this story!**

**I'm really sorry that it's about 10 months overdue! Plus this chapter isn't all that long either. T_T But I hope you enjoyed the huge amount of SasuSaku fluff! x]  
**

**Unfortunately, I came across a fork in the road and I lost my inspiration for writing for quite some time. After listening to some music today, I suddenly had motivation to finish this chapter that has been sitting on my laptop half-written for nearly a year. **

**So here I am now, apologizing my butt off and hoping you'll still continue to read! **

**Thank you so much to everyone for all of your support and reviews! I appreciate it! Every single review helped to make sure I didn't quit on writing entirely. (: **

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**I'll come back to fix any grammatical errors! It's late, again, as you all know that I have terrible updating habits. It's usually updated late at midnight. xD **

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**No new car in this chapter, but look forward to the unveiling of Sakura's car next chapter! (: **

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**Reviews make me write. (:**

_Lots of Love,_

_XOXO Kaze-chan _


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